The Heavenly Chillbillies
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The Heavenly Chillbillies

Buffalo, New York, United States | Established. Jan 01, 2008

Buffalo, New York, United States
Established on Jan, 2008
Band Blues Americana

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Music

Press


"Frank Deblase, Rochester City News Paper"

"This Buffalo band rips through a healthy catalogue of blues, country, rock, and honky tonk; in other words, Americana. The Heavenly Chillbillies play with a wild and loud guitar-fronted recklessness a la Dan Baird, suited for gin mills and buckets of blood. Whether it's a shuffle, a boogie, or a beer-soaked rave-up, the trio dishes out heaps of blue collar, redneck fun." - Frank Deblase, Rochester City News Paper


"Concert Review: Meat Puppets, Heavenly Chillbillies"

In an attempt to see Methanol's extension project, The Atomic Swamis, I stumbled upon Buffalo bar-room heavyweights The Heavenly Chillbillies instead. I landed at Sticky Lips Juke Joint on Friday as the band was plowing through Dave Alvin's tribute to Hank I in "Long White Cadillac." So naturally I warmed to these guys in a hurry as I slammed back a couple of chocolate milks. The band hit heavy on the blues without overdoing it, and stuck close to blues-heavy rock with a spicy dash of the South like a punch in the mouth. - Rochester City Newspaper


"Heavenly Chillbillies a ‘blast’ on Hard Rock stage"

"The Heavenly Chillbillies seem to settle for nothing less than a fun-filled romp on stage every night, this one being no exception. With a few calls to the fans, the band had the crowd singing along to lyrics like ‘My sister's so mean she drinks gasoline,’ and one of the most famous lines in blues history, ‘Blues is my business, and business is good.’ When the crowd wasn't singing, they were bobbing their necks or drumming on their tabletops. The beats were infectious, the riffs raw and real, and the bass heavy and strong." - Dean Goranites, Niagara Gazette


"Upstate Live Magazine"

“Earl and Mike groove under Gabe’s smooth solos and the three part vocals run deep and rich. They aren’t afraid of anything, stretching and breaking genre boundaries on every track.” - Greg Jackson, UpstateLIVE Magazine


"Review of Long Time Coming"

With a too cool mix of bluesy funky rock and country boogie woogie The Heavenly Chillbillies have unleashed their first disc the appropriately titled Long Time Coming. The rock solid rhythm section of Irving and Olczak anchor things down as Mayer whales on the six string. Lots of good stuff on this one... - Bob Silvestri, BestofWNY.com


Discography

Still working on that hot first release.

Photos

Bio

"This Buffalo band rips through a healthy catalog of blues, country, rock, and honky tonk; in other words, Americana. The Heavenly Chillbillies play with a wild and loud guitar-fronted recklessness a la Dan Baird, suited for gin mills and buckets of blood. Whether it's a shuffle, a boogie, or a beer-soaked rave-up, the trio dishes out heaps of blue collar, redneck fun."— Frank De Blase, Rochester City Newspaper

The Heavenly Chillbillies formed in Buffalo N.Y in early 2008 and they knew right away that their unique blend of rockabilly and country infused blues was something special, and thus wasted no time getting down to the business of making music. Within a few months the band began playing locally and immediately developed a solid fan base, which resulted in several residencies at local clubs.

2016 was a breakout year for the band having completed a 13 State tour of the Southeast, supporting Charles Bradley and his Extraordinaries to open the Canalside Free Thursday Concert Series, and culminating the 19th Annual Picnic in the Parkway Summer Concert Series (aka the Bidwell Concerts).  Since their formation, they have played over 600 shows at venues ranging from small clubs to festivals crowds of thousands. Other Highlights of their career include performing at the 2014 Nathan's Famous Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating Contest in Coney Island, NY; regular performances at the SVRA Glenora Wineries Vintage Grand Prix held at Watkins Glen International Raceway, The Brockport BBQ and Arts Festival, BeatFEST, Robby Takac of Goo Goo Dolls fame’s Music Is Art event in Buffalo, and the Music is Art Mardis Gras Jam '11 and '13.
In addition, they have shared the stage with New Orleans Legends Tab Benoit and Carl LeBlanc, Reverend Peyton and his Big Damn Band, and blues heavy weight Tinsley Ellis. The Heavenly Chillbillies are also the official house band for the National Buffalo Wing Festival, held at Coca-Cola Field; this event draws 85,000 people annually.

The Heavenly Chillbillies exemplify the spirit of DIY musicianship. They maintain a 2,000 sq/ft commercial space known as Chilliam Studios. The space houses a commercial recording studio, a full service screen printing shop, as well as a rehearsal and live performance space that is used for several live music podcasts. In an effort to contribute and grow their own local music scene they have produced recordings for many other Buffalo bands including Second Trip, The Naturalists, Pine Fever, 240 North, Jono Rosen, and they are sponsors of the Artvoice B.O.O.M. competition providing free recordings and merch packages to all of the runners up. In the summer of 2015 the band took the DIY spirit to the next level by purchasing a 40 foot MCI tour bus that runs on waste vegetable oil. They secured the bus through a combination of earnings from performances and Chilliam Studios, commercial sponsorship, and a successful crowd-funding camping on IndieGoGo. The bus has 5 bedrooms, a bathroom, ample seating and storage which allows them to travel anywhere with little concern for fuel and lodging costs.

Musically, the group performs an eclectic mix of original music and covers; making every song they perform their own. Their first album of original music, “A Long Time Coming” came out in 2011 and it still sells well at their shows and on the internet. Currently, the band is putting the finishing touches on a new album of original music that is fan tested. “Hot Rods from Hell,” the Chillbillies latest self produced and recorded effort, will be released in late 2016.

The Heavenly Chillbillies attitude about performing music everywhere and often is quite simple, "Bring it on; we'll sleep when we're dead." For The Heavenly Chillbillies playing music is not a hobby or recreation, it is a requirement, their retirement plan, and their way of life. For their fans, it’s a rollicking' good time.

Band Members