Many startup bands find it hard to find a distinct sound. They find it hard to find their own voice, their own niche that sets them apart from everyone else.
The Jack Kerowax has had no problem with that. Their Americana style mixes aspects from a very wide spectrum of genres, such as pop, country, and rock.
The Jack Kerowax started in Dallas, Texas in 2012 when frontman and songwriter Johnny Beauford was looking for sidemen to help him record a solo album. Beauford began playing with guitarist Garrett Padgett, who also plays in the band Bravo, Max! with Beauford, drummer Nathan Adamson, and bassist Chase McMillan. After securing a weekly residency at a Dallas café, the band members began to acquire their gritty Americana sound and eventually became a full-fledged band.
While recording for their debut album, the band played 50 plus shows over the course of 18 months, opening for several national bands. The band then took a break from touring while preparing for the release. The band recorded their album at Ferralog Studios in Dallas, a recording studio owned and operated by the band’s drummer, Nathan Adamson. Chase McMillan was eventually replaced in the band by Adamson’s son and assistant engineer on the album, Nash Griggs. Beauford said that having the younger guy in the band kind of makes touring easier.
“There are four of us in the band, and all of us have been doing this for years, except for the bassist,” Beauford said. “The bassist is actually the drummer’s son, and he’s only like 17. It’s cool because it’s like having a little brother on tour with us all the time because we’re all a generation older than him.”
On Nov. 25, the Jack Kerowax released their debut album. The self-titled album’s lead single, “Ten Year War,” mixes thick harmonies and intricate guitar arpeggios into a love song that tells one to take caution whilst falling in love with someone or something, as though it may eventually turn its back on you.
“It touches on falling in love with a country or religion or person or obsession that may very well turn its back on you,” Beauford said.
Music critics have praised Jack Kerowax’s overall sound, with some calling it “a real success.” One critic in particular praised the bands wide influences.
“Dallas-Forth Worth bandleader Johnny Beauford wanted to make a solo album, so began casting the net for compadres who would fit. The newly minted assemblage started playing a weekly gig in Dallas, and the next thing anyone realized was that the Jack Kerowax was a band,” Bill Bentley of the Morton Report said. “Thank goodness for that, too, because the fresh aggregation has an appealingly strange way of roping together influences ranging from Lou Reed to real country, without every sounding as preposterous as it looks on print.”
Beauford said that though the band has gained a slight following in Dallas, they are still relatively unknown.
“We started in 2012 and it took us a long time to finish the album, so hopefully now we can focus on touring,” Beauford said.
The Jack Kerowax comes from Dallas, which is known for having a pretty large music scene.and has for many years.
The venues of Deep Ellum have hosted many bands and have influenced many artists over the years.
“This really rich guy actually bought basically the entire area of Deep Ellum,” Beauford said. “He’s renovating it to make it solely about the arts, and it’s becoming a place where you can go during the day for a bite to eat or something rather than just coming at night to see a show. I used to go to Deep Ellum all the time for shows when I was younger.”
The band has been doing mini-tours since the release of their album to promote it and get their name out. The band picked this time specifically to tour so they could do it during Spring Break.
“We picked Spring Break time to do this because we wanted the chance for everyone to come out to our shows. We’re playing in Denver and Colorado Springs and other places because of the music scene there,” Beauford said. “We picked Amarillo as one of our stops because we’ve never played there before, and who wouldn’t want to play there. It’s right in the middle of Dallas and Denver, so it’s a great spot for a show.”
The Jack Kerowax is sure to please most tastes with its wide variety of influences. The show will be at The 806 on Wednesday, March 11, and is free to the public. For more information, The 806’s number is (806) 322-1806.
