The Boomswagglers Blow People Away with New Lineup
Generally speaking, I don’t like change in music. When there’s a band I really like, the last thing I want to hear about is lineup changes. When a song already works one way and creates a nice comfortable groove in my brain like an old trusty baseball cap that fits perfectly, the last thing I’m looking for is some new spin on it. The chemistry for great music is so hard to come by, there’s no sense in tinkering with it once you’ve found it. I don’t want to see Journey being fronted by some Asian karaoke singer. Come to think of it, I don’t want to see Journey at all, but you get my point: I ain’t down with scabs in a band I’ve already fallen in love with.
That is why when I heard that Lawson Bennett of the originally two-piece Boomswagglers was out, and the remaining original member Spencer Cornett had picked up some new guitar player and chick drummer, I had little to no hope that plane would fly. And this isn’t just plugging in some new player, The Boomswagglers were created in this intense friendship between Spencer & Lawson fueled by abject destitution and mutual appreciation for music that gave rise to some of the most honest, authentic, and engaging tunes 2011 has seen released so far. I haven’t seen even one discouraging word said about their bootleg, released for free at Hillgrass Bluebilly Records (read SCM review here).
But I’ll be damned. Listen to me and listen good. This new Boomswagglers lineup, with Steven Bracamontez on guitar, and Natalie McDougall on drums has it. And when I say ‘it’, I’m not just saying it’s good, I mean it has that undefinable thing that when you watch it live, it makes the hair stand up on the back of your neck, the kind of ‘it’ that overrides appeal based simply on taste.
Steven is a masterful guitar player, who seems to have some third-eye sense for the mood and style that Spencer meant for this music to be fleshed out with. Apparently he was in another band with Spencer in the past, and they both hold the honorable distinction of being convicted felons. And Natalie doesn’t play drums like a drummer, which is good, because this would destroy the Boomswagglers’ sound. She plays them like a guitar player, and come to find out, she is one, and brings a smart ear to the instrumentation.
And the most compelling part is that they are all so young. The future and potential of this band is what I think intrigues me the most. Hypothetically, they can only get better. And Steven already has that hard-to-teach “taste over technique” Keith Richards-like quality and understanding. I’m simply getting shivers right now typing about what the potential is for this band. And the best quality of The Boomswagglers has always been their authenticity, and even though Lawson was as authentic as it gets, they seem even more authentic now with the new members.
And for those worried about Lawson, the odd man out in the new Boomswagglers, don’t. He’s got a buttload of talent too, and I have no doubt we will be hearing from him soon. It was simply a situation where Lawson had evolved away from what The Boomswagglers try to capture in their music. But having said that, Lawson’s fingerprints are still on this band. He helped write those songs, and forge their direction, and still deserves credit for what The Boomswagglers are doing now.
No video will capture what I felt from The Boomswagglers last Wednesday (10-5-11) at Antone’s in Austin, but it’s better than nothing.
Two guns way up on the new lineup!
New Song:
October 12, 2011 @ 2:43 pm
damn right boomswagglers are wonderful. Its bands like this that mkae the Great State of Texas so god damned great
October 12, 2011 @ 6:28 pm
Nice sound for a three piece.
October 12, 2011 @ 7:20 pm
Awesome!! I love it when great things happen to great bands!
October 12, 2011 @ 7:31 pm
I completely agree, they are a great mesh of Stevie Ray Vaughn meets “oh Brother where Art Thou” their music is music you can listen to all night. It’s kind of like a great cd that that you can listen to from start to finish and put it on repeat. If you ever get a chance to hear The Boomswagglers in person, do it!
October 12, 2011 @ 8:05 pm
I happen to know each member of the band and am even the older brother of Spencer, and I have to say I’m incredibly proud of what they’ve accomplished in such a short time. The sky’s the limit for these boomswagglin sons of bitches.
October 12, 2011 @ 11:23 pm
Nice vids, thanks! I downloaded the free album when you reviewed it, and have thoroughly enjoyed it since. New line up sounds good. Can’t wait to hear more from ’em.
October 13, 2011 @ 6:54 am
“Natalie doesn”™t play drums like a drummer, which is good, because this would destroy the Boomswagglers”™ sound. She plays them like a guitar player” How is that physically possible? Are you meaning that she doesn’t pound them like she’s in a speed metal band?
October 13, 2011 @ 8:44 am
That statement was meant figuratively, not literally, meaning that as a musician of another instrument, she can listen to the music understanding it from a guitar player’s perspective, and hypothetically play the drums like a guitar player would like to hear them played, instead of from a more narrow perspective of someone who only plays drums.
October 13, 2011 @ 7:03 am
The Boomswagglers album is the favorite on my playlist these days. Hope this new lineup fills the potential you envision.
October 13, 2011 @ 9:25 am
I am so proud of the new line-up. After $1,300 put into the “bootleg” album, and the shows that were happening with the old line-up… it was very VERY unfullfilling. Now, I get to witness the true stage presence of Spencer Cornett and the faith I have in him is plentyful. This band is the real deal. Any relationship Spencer had with Lawson is just as much as the friendship he has with the new band… off the stage. Spencer is the real deal, for what he is doing and I suggest folks keep their brow up on that boy. Long live music that ain’t tryin to sell me something.
October 13, 2011 @ 12:58 pm
The bootleg has received damn near 75% of my music listening time since I downloaded it. Amazing batch of songs. Trailer Park Special, while it may be a cliche title, is just fucking brilliant. I’m not gonna lie and pretend like this doesn’t bum me out a bit. I’ve no doubt that the new members are good, but goddamn if I didn’t love the lack of drums and electric guitars (something about just 2 acoustics makes for great music to my ears,……like Johnny and Willie VH1 storytellers album). And I can’t say that the Wilco Blues vid you posted was an improvement over the one on the album, but I wasn’t there. Only 1 damn album from those two,…… oh well, such is life. Spencer writes a damn good song, so I’m sure I’ll come around. I wish them luck.
October 23, 2011 @ 10:22 am
where do i get this album? bootlag and others if any
October 23, 2011 @ 10:35 am
http://www.hillgrassbluebillyrecords.com/bootlegs/