Genres Alt country Labels Bloodshot Records Genre Alternative country | Years active 1994-present Record label Bloodshot Records | |
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Origin Chicago, Illinois, United States (1994) Albums Going Down In History, Electric Waco Chair Members Jon Langford, Steve Goulding Similar The Mekons, Paul Burch, Sally Timms, The Three Johns, Robbie Fulks | ||
The Waco Brothers are an alternative country band in Chicago, Illinois, formed by Jon Langford of the Mekons. The group grew out of Langford's wish to play more country-influenced music as the Mekons concentrated more on a punk sound. They were originally put together simply for local Chicago shows, but the success of their Bloodshot Records albums allowed them to tour the US occasionally. Many of the members also participate in Langford's Pine Valley Cosmonauts project.
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Although the band has recorded eight studio albums since 1995, their cult popularity is primarily a response to their live performances. Their album, Waco Express: Live & Kickin' at Schuba's Tavern is a concert recording which Ken Tucker, the pop music critic for NPR's Fresh Air and Editor-at-Large at Entertainment Weekly, described as "country as it should be written and played, with a long memory for roadhouse honky-tonks rather than TV-ready music videos." Author and music critic Sarah Vowell told the Chicagoist, "I’ve never been able to find a live band in New York as consistently thrilling and funny and fun as the Waco Brothers."
In 2012, the Waco Brothers collaborated with Nashville mainstay Paul Burch to produce Great Chicago Fire. The Chicago Tribune said of the album, "If the Rolling Stones were still making great records, this would be it."
Members
Former members
Discography
Songs
Hard Rain's Gonna FallGreat Chicago Fire · 2012
Plenty Tough - Union MadeTo the Last Dead Cowboy · 1995
Do You Think About Me?Do You Think About Me? · 1997