In an industry where each year of existence should really be crunched into a formula not unlike the one used for calculating a dog's true age, Greenfield's Stone Coyotes—with more than two decades under their collective collar—are admittedly a little long in the tooth. When morale at the Coyote camp is down and it appears that the family trio can't forge ahead, however, singer Barbara Keith says these days she's able to look up to the skies and draw hope and inspiration from her gods of rock and roll.
As evidenced by the Coyotes brash brand of stripped-down American rock, the band—rounded out by Keith's husband Doug Tibbles on drums and son John Tibbles on bass—owes certain elements of its sound to a myriad of musicians long since deceased, including Jimi Hendrix and Janis Joplin.
In Keith's case, though, her preferred deities of decibel delivery are actually "Rock" and "Roll"—the names of the two satellites responsible for pumping out XM radio transmissions from their otherworldly orbits.
"XM has been fantastic to us," she declares. "And it reinforces what I've always said: 'If we could just have our case tried in the court of the people instead of the music biz offices, we'd take the verdict.' [Technology] has enabled us to go from the studio to the radio…and downloads are now what keep the wolves from our door."
While Keith maintains that the Coyotes enjoy regular play on XM's Deep Tracks and XCountry channels throughout the year, it was the 2006 release of the band's seventh studio offering, Dreams Of Glory, that produced the first blip on the satellite radio radar and garnered the band its heaviest rotations to date. It's a phenomenon that Keith and company wouldn't mind seeing repeat itself as they ready for their latest offering, VIII, scheduled to drop this March.
As the band readies for the impending release party blitz that will mark the occasion, the gritty vocalist/guitarist says that the Coyotes plan to utilize the lion's share of late winter/early spring 2008 visiting some of the newfound fans their X-ponentially increased exposure has afforded them.
Catch the band's first of the year/only local play for the foreseeable future at the Sierra Grill this Thursday, Jan. 31. For more, visit their online home at www.stonecoyotes.com.
Also celebrating a new CD is Jacob's Son, a Springfield-based four-piece fueled by the guitar/vocal tandem of Greg and Mike Bean. Recorded at Westfield's famed Zing Studios, the band's new 6-tune EP, Goodbye To Reason, marks its first studio output since the 2005 release of its debut demo. To hear some of Jacob's Son's new audio, check out its official release party Feb. 2 at Chicopee's Maximum Capacity, with Gaiah and Nosho.
Speaking of support, Anthony Barrineau of Blastermonkey Productions reports than when he learned of Vicious Disorder bassist Chris Pauze's uncle passing away and all the costs associated with it, he offered up his company's services to aid in any way possible.
"The idea to have a benefit concert was actually the idea of Vicious Disorder's Chris and Scott [LaFlamme]," he says of the Feb. 2 event, occurring at Crossroads, 1701 Park St. in Palmer, which will feature Vicious Disorder, State of Fate, Perfect Crime and seven other certified skull-melters starting at 3 p.m., raising funds for both Paul Pauze, Jr.'s medical and funeral costs and the American Cancer Society. For more info on this magnanimous metal fest, visit the "upcoming show" section at myspace.com/viciousdisorder1.?
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