THE WILDERS
Theatr Mwldan, Friday 14 May, 7.30pm/yh
£12 (£10)
There’ll be a hillbilly riot at Theatr Mwldan on Friday 14 May when The Wilders, the world famous country band from Kansas comes to Cardigan.
The Wilders’ last tour of Wales was a sell-out success and here’s why: there are the dobro and banjo, old-time fiddle tunes, and allegiances to Hank Williams and Johnny Cash. There are the old-time songs, heartbreak, and hard-driving honky tonk subject matter. But, out of necessity, the Americana band’s early days required drastic measures that set them on a raucous and innovative course. When hillbilly band The Wilders first named themselves, they didn’t realize the moniker itself was a bit of old-time snake oil; less of a description, and more a prediction.
“We got a lot of gigs in the early days doing what we call the Commando Jam,” explains guitarist and lead singer Ike Sheldon. They would go to a festival they wanted to play, among dozens of bands jamming for attention in the lobby. “We would set up and just wait. There’s always a moment when nobody else was playing and when it would happen we would just say, ‘Go!’ We’d play the loudest, most heinous fiddle tune. Everyone would think, ‘What the hell is going on over there?’ It was totally commando, like sneaking around and pulling out the machine gun and mowing people down with music. You can’t just be strumming in the corner. You gotta make noise. That’s how we would get a lot of contacts. That’s one reason we play like that.”
When they started the group, band members listened to a lot of early country music, old-time music from the ’20s and ’30s, and early honky tonk. “There’s a good maxim in art,” explains Ike. “You shouldn’t really break the rules until you know the rules. Look at Picasso; the dude was absolutely amazing. He could draw anything perfectly, very detailed and realistic. That’s how he could move on to other things. We said ‘If we are gonna play country music, let’s learn what makes it tick.’ And now that we know, we are reaping the benefits; we can throw the rules out the window.”
While the band already had high energy on stage, when bass player Nate joined the band the intensity and groove was bumped up a notch, egging the rest of the players on to play even faster and harder. One day when The Wilders were in the studio, guitarist Sam Broussard (of Steve Riley and the Mamou Playboys) dropped by. Upon meeting Ike he said, “Are you the guitar player?” to which Ike replied, “Yes.” “Well,” said Broussard, “you ain’t much of a guitar player, but you’re a hell of a drummer!” He went on to say, “There’s all these bluegrass guys who say ‘We don’t need drums.’ Well they’re wrong. Someone’s playing drums in every band. It doesn’t have to be on a drum. You guys got a good one going on!”
“When we get the rhythm going, Nate and I say, the Phantom Drummer shows up,” says Ike. “A guy came up to us after one concert and said, ‘I called my son and told him how great you were. He asked what instruments you were playing and I said, ‘Well, fiddle, banjo, a drummer… Actually I’m not sure if they had a drummer.’ Do you guys have a drummer? It sure sounds like you had one.’ We’ve only got a Phantom Drummer when we all hook up and make that imagined fifth member driving the beat. Our solos and singers are all great, but rhythm is job one. If your rhythm sucks, your band sucks. When it’s working right and the Phantom Drummer appears, the band plays itself.”
The Wilders’ latest CD, Someone’s Got To Pay, produced by the legendary Dirk Powell, won the Best Alt.Country Album category in last year’s Independent Music Awards, while the track, Hey, Little Darlin carried off the Best Americana Song title in the same event.
Wild by name, wild by nature, don’t miss these ‘hillbilly hurricanes’ at Theatr Mwldan on Friday 14 May. Tickets are £12 (£10 concessions) and can be booked via www.mwldan.co.uk or by calling the Box Office on 01239 621200.
Also see www.wilderscountry.com
