Chance Fisher bassist chats about band, music

Sam Adcock is not a hippie even though most of his fans are. Adcock plays bass for the Hattiesburg rock group, Chance Fisher.

In the band’s early days, they were known for their musical improvisations, technical arrangements and prolonged solos. However, Adcock likes to think they’ve moved away from this and into more eclectic territory.

“We’re a reformed jam band. We’ve begun to write and perform more of the Radiohead-type atmospheric rock and roll but we also do a lot of funk and bluegrass. It’s whatever we feel like playing at any given moment,” Adcock said.

Taking a page from the Beatles long and varied career, Chance Fisher is now an encyclopedia of various musical genres and styles. At any given show, you might hear anything from a country song to all-out arena rock. Chance Fisher openly draws from their influences and create pastiche melodies that ask the listener to keep an open mind.

This is not surprising, being that Adcock grew up getting a priceless education in classic rock from his father, who was a disc jockey in Jackson.

“It gave me a very early introduction. Every Saturday, we would go to Bebop Records [in Jackson] and we would sit and listen to the records he bought for his show. We would discuss what was important about each [record] and then he would relate it back to my generation of music. For example, when talking about Nirvana
he would say, ‘This guy listens to a lot of Beatles. Listen to those harmonies.’”

Adcock began playing music 14 years ago when his mother’s boyfriend at the time bought him a bass after he became frustrated with the guitar.

Adcock first played with Chance Fisher’s keyboardist, Adam Kelly, in a high school band in Jackson. When both moved to Hattiesburg to go to college, Kelly called Adcock and asked him to join Chance Fisher after their bass player was fired.

At first, Adcock scoffed at the idea of playing in a jam band. But with gigs lined up and no other options, Adcock decided to help them out until they could find a permanent bass player. That was seven years ago. Since then, Adcock has found a home in Chance Fisher and notes that there is a mutual respect between all of the members.

“We are the longest running band in Hattiesburg with the same lineup and that is because our desire to play with each other and the dynamics (of the band) stay the same. Everybody gets their fair 25 percent interest. We all vote on everything and we’re very democratic,” said Adcock.

You can catch Chance Fisher at the Bottling Company in Hattiesburg on Feb. 20 starting at 9 p.m.