Petticoat Junkies: local alt-country

The Petticoat Junkies are not your typical band.

For starters, they don’t hang out every day. They don’t all listen to the same music and they disagree on lots of things. But this is also what makes them work so well together.

These differences give them the unique sound and personality that people in Hattiesburg and beyond are responding to.

A much demanded CD will be released sometime later this year and their Web site enjoys heave traffic. They have also been tapped to open for such nationally renowned artists like Kaki King and the Mountain Goats.

For a band that’s only been together a little over a year, most would agree they got off to a great start.

Started as the brainchild of singer-songwriter, Brian Nobles, the Junkies have worked their way up from obscurity to a well-known and well-rehearsed group.

Live, they dominate the stage. Their shows are almost always sold out and they are one of the most active bands in Hattiesburg.

“They’re always right on cue. Its just good music,” says Virgil Breeden, a local Hattiesburg fan.

If you had to file them in a record store, most would throw them in the alt-country genre lumped in with artists like Ryan Adams. However, there is much more to their sound than a bunch of indie-influenced  songs.

The swing-time feel of ‘Pleasant Valley Hop’ seems like it shouldn’t fit, but it cements its place in their set every time they perform it. Then, there are rockers like ‘Restless,’ which is arguably their most popular song. 

For the second year in a row, the Junkies opened a Halloween show in an extremely overcrowded room for a group of enthusiastic costume wearers. Last year, each member went as a character from the “Wizard of Oz.” This year, they decided not to go with a theme.

Costumes aside, the people in Bennie’s Boom Boom Room were going crazy by the time the Junkies took the stage. The Petticoat Junkies are known for their excellent performance. 

This reputation is the product of countless practices and the acknowledgment that no one member has the vision to control the future of the band.

“A typical practice session for the Junkies consists of me and Brian arguing about something that doesn’t make any sense from either of us,” Stephen Scott, the lead guitar player said. “And Davis playing drums really loud, which is kind of like mom and dad are fighting – turn the stereo up. Then Cody eventually screams for everyone to shut up and tells us what we’re doing,”

While it sound like chaos, it’s a formula that works quite well for the Junkies. Each has veto power, and most of all, they respect each other’s opinions. This way, it is truly a collaborative effort of four incredibly diverse people that come together to make one inspiring sound.

The Petticoat Junkies are Brian Nobles, Cody Ruth, Davis Townsend, and Stephen Scott. The Petticoat Junkies can be contacted through myspace, ourstage.com, or emailed at petticoatjunkies@gmail.com.