The Lonesome Heroes

Artist Information

Biography

“A chance meeting between Yo La Tengo and Patsy Cline.”
-Flagstaff Weekly

The Lonesome Heroes debut full length "Daydream Western" has been nominated by The Independent Music Awards for album of the year for 2011. Described by Austin NPR affiliate KUT 90.5 FM as: "Western Americana, a cross-pollination of rock, folk, and country with psych and indie pop – influences from their Texas and Brooklyn backgrounds. It’s the soundscape that occurs when indie rock and country artfully cross paths." Inclusive in sound, the Lonesome Heroes are as comfortable in the West Texas desert as the sandy shores of California. "Daydream Western" represents a maturation of their sound into a highway revelry that crosses state lines and blurs genres seamlessly.

The core of the band consists of the shared songwriting and vision of Austin based couple Landry McMeans (vocals/dobro) and Rich Russell (vocals/guitar.) 27 states, four years of national touring, and two critically acclaimed EPs finally brought the Lonesome Heroes to the studio under the production guidance of Austin steel guitar legend, Gary Newcomb (Li'l Cap'n Travis, Richard Buckner, Stone River Boys, Bill Callahan.) Mastered by recent Grammy award winner Brian Lucey at Magic Garden (Black Keys, the Shins, Dr John) "Daydream Western," will have an official national press and radio push in March after an action packed SXSW for the Heroes with 10 show in 6 days.

Influences:
The Magnetic Fields, The Silver Jews, Gillian Welch, Johnny Cash, Smog, Leonard Cohen, Bob Dylan, Wilco, The Velvet Underground, Band of Annuals, Graham Parsons, Lil' Cap'n Travis, Beck, Neko Case, Hank Williams, Luna, Jan Bell, Yo La Tengo, The Flaming Lips, The Weary Boys, Patty Griffin, Herman Dune, Galaxie 500, Jolie Holland, Kris Kristoferson, The Darling New Neighbors, Will Oldham, Leo Rondeau, Woody Guthrie, Lou Barlow, Iron and Wine, Emmylou Harris, The Flying Burrito Brothers…


THE LONESOME HEROES ARE:
Rich Russell: Vocals, Guitar, & Steel.
Landry McMeans: Vocals, Lap Steel, Dobro, Guitar.


RECORDINGS & TOURING BAND:
Jeff Johnston: Electric Bass & Saw.
Jim DeGregorio: Upright/Electric Bass
Bill Doughty: Drums
Chris Clonts: Electric Guitar, Bells, Harmony Vocals.
Chuck Fleming: Drums.
Sarah Stollak: Fiddle
Kullen Fuchs: Trumpet, Vibraphone, Keys, Accordion.


TOUR:
The Lonesome Heroes played 200+ shows in 2011.

Playing listening rooms as a two or three piece, and large clubs and festivals as a five piece.

From emerging Indie Rock to established Country acts, The Heroes have shared the stage with a wide variety of acts including:

Thao & The Get Down Stay Down

Black Joe Lewis

Johnny Bush

Deer Tick

Jonathan Richman

Wayne "The Train" Hancock

These United States

Gregory Alan Isakov

The California Honey Drops


THE LONESOME HEROES HAVE PLAYED IN 27 STATES.

A few favorite venues across America are:

Cafe Du Nord, San Francisco, CA, Antone's, Austin, TX, Basement, Nashville, TN, Bear Tree Tavern, Centenial, WY, Brookdale Lodge, Santa Cruz CA, Buckhorn Bar, Laramie, WY, Cactus Cafe, Austin TX, Cinema Bar, Los Angeles, CA, Continental Club, Austin, TX, Crepe Place, Santa Cruz, CA, Duffs, Portland, OR, Emo's, Austin, TX, Farm 215, Athens, GA, Fernwood Lodge, Big Sur, CA, Fire, Philadelphia, PA, Granary, Jackson Hole, WY, Grand Old Echo, Los Angles, CA, Hotel Utah, San Francisco, CA, Jambalaya, Arcata, CA, Knotty Pine, Victor, ID, Luckenbach, TX, Makeout Room, San Francisco, CA, Meadowlark, Denver, CO, The Mint, Los Angeles, CA, Mucky Duck, Houston, TX, Northside Taverm, Cincinatti, OH, Pete's Candy Store, Brooklyn, NY. Piano's, NY, NY, Red & The Black, Washington DC, Reggies, Chicago, IL, Rocket Room, Colorado Springs, CO, Rodeo Bar, NY, NY, Sidewalk Cafe, NY, NY, Silver Dollar Bar, Jackson Hole, WY, Springwater Super Club, Nashville, TN, Stafford, Bryan, TX, Starlight Theatre, Terlingua, TX, Stephen Talkhouse, LI, NY, Stork Club, Oakland CA, Superfine, Brooklyn, NY, Swing Station, Ft. Collins, CO, The Town Pump, Ashville, NC, Ukiha Brewing Co, Ukiha, CA, Union Pool NY, NY, Vaudville Muse, Des Moines, IA, Wind River Brewery, Pinedale, WY, Zona Rosa, Austin, Zoey's, Ventura, CA.


CONTACT:

Booking:
Original Artist Agency
Cris Cunningham: originalartistagency@gmail.com
http://www.originalartistagency.com/

Band:
(303) 726 9406
thelonesomeheroes@gmail.com
www.thelonesomeheroes.com

Instrumentation

Current lineup:
Rich Russell: Vocals, Guitar, and Lap steel.
Ms. Landry McMeans: Vocals, Lap steel, Dobro, and Guitar.
Jeff Jonston: Bass.
Chuck Fleming: Drums
Kullen Fuchs: Trumpet, Vibraphone, Accordion, Keys and textures.

Discography

RELEASES:

MUSIC

"Don't Play to Lose," EP, 2006
Floodwater Records, Minneapolis, MN.

"Sunny Eyed Highway," 2007.
(SR)

"Crooked Highway." EP, 2008.
(SR)

"Wood Paneled Walls & Worn Cliches" (Live from Austin, TX.) 2009
(SR)

"Daydream Western," 2012. Produced by Gary Newcomb.
(SR)

"Don't Play to Lose" featured on "Indy Route" Compilation 2008.

"Canary" featured on The Austin Sound: STARRY EYES VOL. III SXSW COMPILATION, 2009.


FILM
The Lonesome Heroes stared in a Bank of America Commercial aired during the Olympics 2008.

Cameo & Live Performance in Straight to the Bone, Featured in Austin Film Festival, directed by Erik Mauk.

Don't Play to Lose, Music Video. Produced by Framless Films 2009.

"Tricks," Element Skateboards Video, directed By Michael Kershner.

"Count Me In, The Story of a Swing State,Directed By Daniel Stolzman, 2004 Frameless Productions.

Official Website

http://www.thelonesomeheroes.com

Links

• Facebook
• Twitter

Audio

• Aspens
  Listen   Download
• Something Reckless
  Listen   Download
• AM Radio
  Listen   Download
• Highway 287
  Listen   Download
• Visions Of Yesterday
  Listen   Download

Video

"Don't Play To Lose" Music Video

Photo Gallery

Press

• Press Synopsis [+ Show ]
  

  Sound Check III Festival. Not the square kind of country, nor outlaw country, or even contemporary ...Sound Check III Festival.
  Not the square kind of country, nor outlaw country, or even contemporary country would fit what The Lonesome Heroes from Austin bring to the stage. Reverb-heavy electric dobro underneath a playful boy-girl vocal blend from Landry McMeans and Rich Russell often pushes the indie rock quintet into psychedelia—but not without the songwriting sensibilities of classic country and folk.
  Planet Jackson Hole
  Jun 23, 2010
  
  With Great Music Comes Great Responsibility.
  Experimenting with their big-city-meets-country-roots style, Austin, Texas, duo the Lonesome Heroes add a psychedelic twist to the standard alt-county genre but with the heartfelt poignancy and lyrical sensibility of a road-weary crooner. Their rhythmic vocals layered over acoustic guitar and reverb-heavy steel has been described as a chance meeting between Yo la Tengo and Patsy Cline.
  Flagstaff Live!
  May 20, 2010
  
  Show Review: NX35 Festival.
  They refer to themselves as “psychedelic country”, and they really aren’t joking. The groovy elements that helped make up a good chunk of the great 1970’s country rock that came from the Golden State are put to use here, as well. But, it was when McMeans told the crowd that, for their last song, they wanted to bust out a “spacey, hippy song”, that I finally heard the substance to back up their lofty claims of being more than just your average country rock band from Austin. “Constant Vacation” was in fact, a dreamy, trippy ode to their life on the road. McMeans even dropped down practically to her knees in order to finagle a little distortion from her Dobro. Now, that’s, trippy, bro.
  Best of Texas
  April 19, 2010.
  
  Flagstaff Hot Picks!
  Like a hooker at the church bake sale, Austin, Texas, duo The Lonesome Heroes don’t quite belong solely in the country scene with a sound that walks the line between psychedelic rock and alt-country.
  Flagstaff Live!
  February 18, 2010.
  
  CONTINENTAL CLUB. AUSTIN, TX.
  “... The Flying Burrito Brothers, The Magnetic Fields, and The Flaming Lips. The group clearly has a wide range of musical interests, perhaps only surpassed by the number of instruments you could hear on any given track. The 7-plus band members bring everything from pedal steel to saxophone to fiddle to melodica into their twangy indie Americana.”
  The Austinist
  Jan 16, 2010.
  
  Show Review: Silver Dollar Bar, Jackson, WY.
  “Just when you thought country-rock’s boundaries were maxed-out, Austin’s Lonesome Heroes added a psychedelic-indie edge. The free-spirited Heroes are a diamond in the saturated buffet of what people are calling country these days.”
  Jul 22, 2009
  PLANET JACKSON HOLE
  
  "CROOKED HIGHWAY"
  “The group’s debut full length flourishes in its ability to be a guiltless revelry that extends beyond alt country. Evoking sounds from the Cowboy Junkies to a twangier version of Alison Krauss the album draws the listener in with ease. An excellent offering from a talented duo that intertwine their talents to perfection.”
  Jan 13, 2009
  AUSTIN SOUND
  
  "CROOKED HIGHWAY"
  “The debut full-length moves in more focused, if experimentally flourished, directions. Russell's playful drawl shading Lyle Lovett. McMeans' soft trill on "Canary" and "Stardust" lifts the album into airier climes that balance Russell's earthier tones, like Alison Krauss with a Texas twang, the best songs marrying the two vocal impulses in duet.”
  Oct 31, 2008
  THE AUSTIN CHRONICLE
  
  "Don't Play to Lose" EP Review
  Balancing on the slide of Landry McMeans' lap steel, the Lonesome Heroes' sad and forlorn country cry walks the dirt road from West Texas desert to a poor man's urban dwelling. Singer Rich Russell's Brooklyn upbringing marries Willie Nelson to Will Oldham on the Heroes' debut EP, and when McMeans' delicately airy voice opens up "Oyster," tears roll.
  Austin Chronicle
  July 21st, 2007.
  
  Austin Daze: "Don't Play to Lose" Review
  The Lonesome Heroes are on a mission to make a different kind of country music. With its “Grapes of Wrath” era feel soaked in reverb, you get the feeling you are listening to a long distant echo of something that once was. The drifting melancholy and bittersweet style is beyond the range of their youth, and yet it seems totally natural to them.
  The Austin Daze
  July 2007

• THE GOODS [+ Show ]
  

  Not the square kind of country, nor outlaw country, or even contemporary country would fit what The ...Not the square kind of country, nor outlaw country, or even contemporary country would fit what The Lonesome Heroes from Austin bring to the stage. Reverb-heavy electric dobro underneath a playful boy-girl vocal blend from Landry McMeans and Rich Russell often pushes the indie rock quintet into psychedelia—but not without the songwriting sensibilities of classic country and folk.
  June 23, 2010
  Jackson Hole Weekly

• With Great Music Comes Great Responsibility. [+ Show ]
  

  Experimenting with their big-city-meets-country-roots style, Austin, Texas, duo the Lonesome Heroes... Experimenting with their big-city-meets-country-roots style, Austin, Texas, duo the Lonesome Heroes add a psychedelic twist to the standard alt-county genre but with the heartfelt poignancy and lyrical sensibility of a road-weary crooner. Their rhythmic vocals layered over acoustic guitar and reverb-heavy steel has been described as a chance meeting between Yo la Tengo and Patsy Cline.
  Flagstaff Live!
  May 20, 2010.

• NX35 Festival Review [+ Show ]
  

  They refer to themselves as “psychedelic country”, and they really aren’t joking. The groovy element...They refer to themselves as “psychedelic country”, and they really aren’t joking. The groovy elements that helped make up a good chunk of the great 1970’s country rock that came from the Golden State are put to use here, as well. But, it was when McMeans told the crowd that, for their last song, they wanted to bust out a “spacey, hippy song”, that I finally heard the substance to back up their lofty claims of being more than just your average country rock band from Austin. “Constant Vacation” was in fact, a dreamy, trippy ode to their life on the road. McMeans even dropped down practically to her knees in order to finagle a little distortion from her Dobro.
  April 19, 2010
  Best Of Texas

• The Superman Blues. [+ Show ]
  

  Like a hooker at the church bake sale, Austin, Texas, duo The Lonesome Heroes don’t quite belong so... Like a hooker at the church bake sale, Austin, Texas, duo The Lonesome Heroes don’t quite belong solely in the country scene with a sound that walks the line between psychedelic rock and alt-country.
  February 18. 2010
  Flagstaff Live!

• Continental Club Show Review [+ Show ]
  

  CONTINENTAL CLUB. AUSTIN, TX. “... The Flying Burrito Brothers, The Magnetic Fields, and The Flamin...CONTINENTAL CLUB. AUSTIN, TX.
  “... The Flying Burrito Brothers, The Magnetic Fields, and The Flaming Lips. The group clearly has a wide range of musical interests, perhaps only surpassed by the number of instruments you could hear on any given track. The 7-plus band members bring everything from pedal steel to saxophone to fiddle to melodica into their twangy indie Americana.”
  The Austinist
  Jan 16, 2010
  

• The Goods [+ Show ]
  

  SILVER DOLLAR BAR, JACKSON, WY. “Just when you thought country-rock’s boundaries were maxed-out, Au...SILVER DOLLAR BAR, JACKSON, WY.
  “Just when you thought country-rock’s boundaries were maxed-out, Austin’s Lonesome Heroes added a psychedelic-indie edge. The free-spirited Heroes are a diamond in the saturated buffet of what people are calling country these days.”
  Jul 22, 2009
  PLANET JACKSON HOLE

• "Crooked Highway" Review [+ Show ]
  

  CROOKED HIGHWAY “The group’s debut full length flourishes in its ability to be a guiltless revelry ...CROOKED HIGHWAY
  “The group’s debut full length flourishes in its ability to be a guiltless revelry that extends beyond alt country. Evoking sounds from the Cowboy Junkies to a twangier version of Alison Krauss the album draws the listener in with ease. An excellent offering from a talented duo that intertwine their talents to perfection.”
  Jan 13, 2009
  AUSTIN SOUND

• "Crooked Highway" Review [+ Show ]
  

  "CROOKED HIGHWAY" “The debut full-length moves in more focused, if experimentally flourished, direc..."CROOKED HIGHWAY"
  “The debut full-length moves in more focused, if experimentally flourished, directions. Russell's playful drawl shading Lyle Lovett. McMeans' soft trill on "Canary" and "Stardust" lifts the album into airier climes that balance Russell's earthier tones, like Alison Krauss with a Texas twang, the best songs marrying the two vocal impulses in duet.”
  Oct 31, 2008
  THE AUSTIN CHRONICLE

• "Don't Play to Lose." EP Review [+ Show ]
  

  Balancing on the slide of Landry McMeans' lap steel, the Lonesome Heroes' sad and forlorn country... Balancing on the slide of Landry McMeans' lap steel, the Lonesome Heroes' sad and forlorn country cry walks the dirt road from West Texas desert to a poor man's urban dwelling. Singer Rich Russell's Brooklyn upbringing marries Willie Nelson to Will Oldham on the Heroes' debut EP, and when McMeans' delicately airy voice opens up "Oyster," tears roll.
  Austin Chronicle
  July 21st, 2007.
  
  
  

• Austin Sound Review [+ Show ]
  

  It is hard to imagine the Space Country sound through description alone, for you certainly don't hea...It is hard to imagine the Space Country sound through description alone, for you certainly don't hear it on the radio or even very often on the indie scene. But when you do, and it's done as perfectly as it is on this EP, it registers to the bone. It would be hard to find a more perfect exemplar of this crazy coupling that turns out not to be so crazy than this band. The subject matter is likewise a perfect blend of indie space rock and classic country, the abstract neurotic and the concrete pathetic
  

• Don't Play to Lose EP [+ Show ]
  

  The Lonesome Heroes are on a mission to make a different kind of country music. With its “Grapes of ...The Lonesome Heroes are on a mission to make a different kind of country music. With its “Grapes of Wrath” era feel soaked in reverb, you get the feeling you are listening to a long distant echo of something that once was. The drifting melancholy and bittersweet style is beyond the range of their youth, and yet it seems totally natural to them.
  The Austin Daze
  July 2007

• LONESOME HEROES REWRITE THE RULES OF ALT. COUNTRY [+ Show ]
  

  From Feature Article: Lonesome Heroes rewrite the rules of alt.country. Since taking up residen...From Feature Article: Lonesome Heroes rewrite the rules of alt.country.
  Since taking up residency at the Hole in the Wall last September, the Lonesome Heroes' alt.country nights have become one of the most popular weekly events in Austin. As a genre, alt.country hardly begins to characterize the eclectic lineups. All musical directions ultimately converge in the Lonesome Heroes' easy psychedelic twang.”
  Apr 4, 2008
  THE AUSTIN CHRONICLE

Setlist

The Lonesome Heroes have a three hour set of original Indie/Americana material w/ a few covers and standards mixed in. They can readily adapt their set to fit a variety of venues ranging from small acoustic venues to large electric venues. Touring as a two piece, or with a 5 piece electric band.

Basic Requirements

Calendar