Established in 2013, Austin-based Cosmic Country group The Lonesome Band describes its distinct sound as “a little rock, a little funk and a whole lot of country.”
The band’s adrenaline-pumping live show features a wide-ranging set list that includes original music as well as tunes that pay homage to legends like Waylon Jennings, Reverend Horton Heat and Hank Williams III. Notable appearances have included a residency as house band for the 2013 and 2014 Santa Fe Independent Film Festival.
The Lonesome Band began as an acoustic duo made up of college friends and fellow audio engineers Anthony Lucio and Sam Whips Allison. Raised in and around the dance halls of music-rich Floresville, Texas, Lucio is a driven sort. After meeting a goal he set for himself – to write 100 songs in one year – he and Allison hit the streets to test out the new material.
Like Lucio, Allison is a fellow Texan who grew up around music. Surrounded by jazz, blues and metal as a boy, he eventually worked his...
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Established in 2013, Austin-based Cosmic Country group The Lonesome Band describes its distinct sound as “a little rock, a little funk and a whole lot of country.”
The band’s adrenaline-pumping live show features a wide-ranging set list that includes original music as well as tunes that pay homage to legends like Waylon Jennings, Reverend Horton Heat and Hank Williams III. Notable appearances have included a residency as house band for the 2013 and 2014 Santa Fe Independent Film Festival.
The Lonesome Band began as an acoustic duo made up of college friends and fellow audio engineers Anthony Lucio and Sam Whips Allison. Raised in and around the dance halls of music-rich Floresville, Texas, Lucio is a driven sort. After meeting a goal he set for himself – to write 100 songs in one year – he and Allison hit the streets to test out the new material.
Like Lucio, Allison is a fellow Texan who grew up around music. Surrounded by jazz, blues and metal as a boy, he eventually worked his way to country through influences like Junior Brown, Danny Gatton and Eddy Shaver. His writing and mixing skills also served as an impetus for the band’s development. “One of Anthony’s songs, ‘Agree to Disagree,’ I couldn’t get out of my head,” he explains. “I came up with a drum shuffle, recorded some bass, lead guitar and vocals, and we had our first song.”
After playing plenty of open mics in and around Texas, Lucio and Allison fleshed out the band’s lineup to include drummer Miguel Gilly, Memphis-bred songwriter Barrett O’Donnell on bass, and seasoned Pedal Steel player Dan Johnson. O'Donnell says he feels right at home in The Lonesome Band. “Since playing with these guys, I’ve made my songwriting more focused,” he says. “It’s cool to have a basis in country and then expand ideas, content and concepts out of the realm where most country bands exist.”
Running Alone, the band’s debut album, is set for release on May 12, 2015. Recorded in Santa Fe’s artist-friendly Frogville Studio, the project includes highlights such as “Make ‘Em Dance,” “Halfway There,” and Lucio’s own “Agree to Disagree,” which O’Donnell dubs a “perfect introduction to what this band is all about.”
