Rev. Horton Heat
It's a fine thing, really.
Mr. Heath and compatriots aren't terribly theatrical. The man dresses in his distinctive orange-red Gretsch coat and wields his own Gretsch model, and he plays with energy, passion, and expression. But he's not big on leaping around or making faces, and his killer rhythm section does its business without fuss muss or contrived high dramatics.
But the Rev has BEEN the Rev for over 20 years, and Jimbo has been there for most of that time. Drummer Paul Simmons comes with an impressive pedigree (including time with The Shack Shakers), and drives the bus like he'd been there from day one.
I'm not saying they're not interesting to watch. They surely ARE. I'm just pointing out that they just play the music, and all the theatre and drama come naturally out of that.
Those who've seen the act live know how devastating this band can be. The Rev stands there relaxed, playing with a deceptive ease and fluidity which almost seem an ironic commentary on the storm and fury he sends from his Heater through the old Fender blackface. I'm just saying: he makes it look easy.
And ain't no one writes songs quite like that either.
Jim's roots run equally deep in plain ol' rock and rootsabilly, but his killer instinct was awakened by a post-punk epiphany around 1981, and he began fusing the fuels into an explosive mix that wouldn't fully detonate till the Reverend emerged from Dallas's bar scene in the mid-80s. The fallout is still spreading.
You can't say if it's rock, country, rockabilly, punk, or pscyho-whatever. What do you make of a band that goes seamlessly from a biting repertoire of viciously funny gut-punching hair-parting originals to "That's Alright Mama" to "King of the Road" to Black Sabbath's "Paranoid"?
From grunge-twang to rockabilly-shred to punktry, it's just Jim, Jimbo, and Paul doing what they do. I don't know if THEY think they had a great night Saturday, but I had a great night hearing them.
Jim "The Rev" Heat: Gretsch RHH guitar, vocals
Jimbo Wallace: bass
Paul Simmons: drums
http://www.reverendhortonheat.com
The Visual
