Vigilantes of Love
Encyclopedia
Vigilantes of Love is a rock
band fronted by Bill Mallonee
with a large number of secondary players drawn from the musician pool in and around Athens, Georgia. In its later manifestations in the later 1990s and early 2000s, Mallonee usually sang, played lead
and rhythm guitar
and harmonica
, although in earlier bands he played drums
.
The band takes its name from the New Order
song "Love Vigilantes," although their sound tends more to folk
, Americana
, and country
rock than New Wave
. Their 2001 album Summershine also showed some movement toward Britpop
and R.E.M.
-style college rock
, which would be more fully explored in Mallonee's solo career.
, where Bill Mallonee attended the University of Georgia
. The act developed as a mostly acoustic, side-project of The Cone Ponies, the last in a long series of line-ups beginning in the mid-'80s with Windows and Walls, and Bed of Roses. For their first two recording projects—Jugular, Drivin' the Nails—the band performed as a trio between Mallonee, Mark Hall (accordion), and Jonathan "Dog-Mess Jonny" Evans (harmonica); the Athens, Ga. performance venues in which they were booked regularly included The Flying Buffalo, the 40-Watt Club, Rockfish Palace, Uptown Lounge, and—their musical "home"—The Downstairs Restaurant (now DT's Down Under). For the third and subsequent cd projects, guitarist and multi-instrumentalist Billy Holmes played an increasingly important role. Later, when greater local success led increasingly to engagements more widely in the Southeast, and with the departure of Mark Hall and Dog-Mess Jonny, the band then re-formed as a traditional touring four-piece rock band including front man Mallonee, Newton Carter, David LaBruyere
, and Travis McNabb
(later of Better Than Ezra
and Sugarland.).
After many years of successful touring nationally and abroad—England and Holland being particularly fond of Mallonnee's music—the band disbanded in 2001 as Mallonee went solo as a singer-songwriter/guitarist/raconteur playing to the renewed interest in roots-music Americana.
The band has now reformed in November 2008. The band played its first show back together on November 20 at the 40 Watt Club. A new album will be released in 2011.
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
band fronted by Bill Mallonee
Bill Mallonee
Bill Mallonee is the songwriter and leader of Vigilantes of Love, an Americana/Alt-Country/Rock band from Athens, Georgia. Though the Vigilantes disbanded in 2001 and recently reformed in 2008, Mallonee continues writing, singing, and playing his music solo...
with a large number of secondary players drawn from the musician pool in and around Athens, Georgia. In its later manifestations in the later 1990s and early 2000s, Mallonee usually sang, played lead
Lead guitar
Lead guitar is a guitar part which plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs within a song structure...
and rhythm guitar
Rhythm guitar
Rhythm guitar is a technique and rôle that performs a combination of two functions: to provide all or part of the rhythmic pulse in conjunction with singers or other instruments; and to provide all or part of the harmony, ie. the chords, where a chord is a group of notes played together...
and harmonica
Harmonica
The harmonica, also called harp, French harp, blues harp, and mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used primarily in blues and American folk music, jazz, country, and rock and roll. It is played by blowing air into it or drawing air out by placing lips over individual holes or multiple holes...
, although in earlier bands he played drums
Drum kit
A drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
.
The band takes its name from the New Order
New Order
New Order are an English rock band formed in 1980 by Bernard Sumner , Peter Hook and Stephen Morris...
song "Love Vigilantes," although their sound tends more to folk
Folk music
Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
, Americana
Americana (music)
Americana is an amalgam of roots musics formed by the confluence of the shared and varied traditions that make up the American musical ethos; specifically those sounds that are merged from folk, country, blues, rhythm and blues, rock and roll and other external influential styles...
, and country
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
rock than New Wave
New Wave music
New Wave is a subgenre of :rock music that emerged in the mid to late 1970s alongside punk rock. The term at first generally was synonymous with punk rock before being considered a genre in its own right that incorporated aspects of electronic and experimental music, mod subculture, disco and 1960s...
. Their 2001 album Summershine also showed some movement toward Britpop
Britpop
Britpop is a subgenre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom. Britpop emerged from the British independent music scene of the early 1990s and was characterised by bands influenced by British guitar pop music of the 1960s and 1970s...
and R.E.M.
R.E.M.
R.E.M. was an American rock band formed in Athens, Georgia, in 1980 by singer Michael Stipe, guitarist Peter Buck, bassist Mike Mills and drummer Bill Berry. One of the first popular alternative rock bands, R.E.M. gained early attention due to Buck's ringing, arpeggiated guitar style and Stipe's...
-style college rock
College rock
College rock is a term that was used in the United States to describe 1980s alternative rock before the term "alternative" came into common usage. The term's use of the word "college" refers to campus radio stations located at institutions of higher education in Canada and the United States, where...
, which would be more fully explored in Mallonee's solo career.
History
The band formed in 1990 in Athens, GeorgiaAthens, Georgia
Athens-Clarke County is a consolidated city–county in U.S. state of Georgia, in the northeastern part of the state, comprising the former City of Athens proper and Clarke County. The University of Georgia is located in this college town and is responsible for the initial growth of the city...
, where Bill Mallonee attended the University of Georgia
University of Georgia
The University of Georgia is a public research university located in Athens, Georgia, United States. Founded in 1785, it is the oldest and largest of the state's institutions of higher learning and is one of multiple schools to claim the title of the oldest public university in the United States...
. The act developed as a mostly acoustic, side-project of The Cone Ponies, the last in a long series of line-ups beginning in the mid-'80s with Windows and Walls, and Bed of Roses. For their first two recording projects—Jugular, Drivin' the Nails—the band performed as a trio between Mallonee, Mark Hall (accordion), and Jonathan "Dog-Mess Jonny" Evans (harmonica); the Athens, Ga. performance venues in which they were booked regularly included The Flying Buffalo, the 40-Watt Club, Rockfish Palace, Uptown Lounge, and—their musical "home"—The Downstairs Restaurant (now DT's Down Under). For the third and subsequent cd projects, guitarist and multi-instrumentalist Billy Holmes played an increasingly important role. Later, when greater local success led increasingly to engagements more widely in the Southeast, and with the departure of Mark Hall and Dog-Mess Jonny, the band then re-formed as a traditional touring four-piece rock band including front man Mallonee, Newton Carter, David LaBruyere
David LaBruyere
David "DeLa" LaBruyere is a musician, songwriter and producer, most notably known as the former longtime bass guitarist for John Mayer. He has also been a member of Vigilantes of Love and worked with Michelle Malone.-External links:*...
, and Travis McNabb
Travis McNabb
Travis Aaron McNabb is a New Orleans-born and Nashville-based American drummer and percussionist. McNabb is perhaps best known as a longtime member of the band Better Than Ezra, although he has performed session and touring work with many acts during his career...
(later of Better Than Ezra
Better Than Ezra
Better Than Ezra is an American alternative rock trio based in New Orleans, Louisiana.-Formation and early success:Better Than Ezra was formed in 1988 by its four original members - vocalist and guitarist Kevin Griffin; Joel Rundell, the lead guitarist; bassist Tom Drummond; and drummer, Cary...
and Sugarland.).
After many years of successful touring nationally and abroad—England and Holland being particularly fond of Mallonnee's music—the band disbanded in 2001 as Mallonee went solo as a singer-songwriter/guitarist/raconteur playing to the renewed interest in roots-music Americana.
The band has now reformed in November 2008. The band played its first show back together on November 20 at the 40 Watt Club. A new album will be released in 2011.
Band members
Besides Bill Mallonee, other band members have included at various times:- Chris Bland: bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
- Jacob Bradley: guitars, bass
- Newton Carter: guitars
- Tom Crea: drums
- Chris Donohue: guitars, bass
- Jonny "Dog-Mess" Evans: harmonica
- Bob Goin: bass
- Mark Hall: accordionAccordionThe accordion is a box-shaped musical instrument of the bellows-driven free-reed aerophone family, sometimes referred to as a squeezebox. A person who plays the accordion is called an accordionist....
- Kevin Heuer: drums
- Billy Holmes: guitars, mandolinMandolinA mandolin is a musical instrument in the lute family . It descends from the mandore, a soprano member of the lute family. The mandolin soundboard comes in many shapes—but generally round or teardrop-shaped, sometimes with scrolls or other projections. A mandolin may have f-holes, or a single...
, keyboardKeyboard instrumentA keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
s, bass - Kenny Hutson: guitars, mandolin, pedal steel guitarPedal steel guitarThe pedal steel guitar is a type of electric guitar that uses a metal bar to "fret" or shorten the length of the strings, rather than fingers on strings as with a conventional guitar. Unlike other types of steel guitar, it also uses pedals and knee levers to affect the pitch, hence the name "pedal"...
, DobroDobroDobro is a registered trademark, now owned by Gibson Guitar Corporation and used for a particular design of resonator guitar.The name has a long and involved history, interwoven with that of the resonator guitar... - John KeaneJohn Keane (record producer)John Keane is an American record producer based in Athens, Georgia, who has worked extensively with R.E.M., Indigo Girls and Widespread Panic. He owns and operates John Keane Studios in Athens, which opened in 1981....
: guitars, pedal steel - Scott KlopfensteinScott KlopfensteinScott Allen "Scotty" Klopfenstein is an American musician and a former member of the band Reel Big Fish. He plays trumpet, guitar, keyboard, and sings....
: drums - David LaBruyereDavid LaBruyereDavid "DeLa" LaBruyere is a musician, songwriter and producer, most notably known as the former longtime bass guitarist for John Mayer. He has also been a member of Vigilantes of Love and worked with Michelle Malone.-External links:*...
: bass - Travis Aaron McNabb: drums
- Drew Grow: guitars
- Doug Nissley: mandolin
Discography
- Jugular (Fingerprint RecordsFingerprint RecordsFingerprint Records is an independent record label formed in 1990 by Mark Heard and Dan Russell.The label went on to release not only Heard's albums, but also albums by The Call, The Vigilantes of Love, Ramona Silver, bob., as well as two tribute albums to Heard after his death in 1992.Heard also...
, 1990) - Driving the Nails (Core, 1991)
- Killing Floor (Fingerprint Records/Sky, 1992) Produced by Mark HeardMark HeardJohn Mark Heard was a record producer, folk-rock singer, and songwriter originally from Macon, Georgia, USA....
and Peter BuckPeter BuckPeter Lawrence Buck , is an American rock guitarist who is best known for playing in and co-founding alternative rock band R.E.M.... - Welcome to Struggleville (Capricorn, 1994)
- Strong Hand of LoveStrong Hand of LoveStrong Hand of Love: A Tribute to Mark Heard is a compilation of songs by various artists in tribute to songwriter, Mark Heard.Recorded and released in 1994, after Heard's death in 1992. Proceeds benefit the Heard Family Fund....
, tribute to Mark HeardMark HeardJohn Mark Heard was a record producer, folk-rock singer, and songwriter originally from Macon, Georgia, USA....
, 1994 - Blister Soul (Capricorn, 1995)
- My Year in Review (1995, fan club cassette)
- V.O.L. (Warner/Resound, 1996, compilation)
- Orphans of GodOrphans of GodOrphans of God is a 2 CD compilation of songs performed by various artists in tribute to songwriter Mark Heard.Recorded and released after Heard's death in 1992, proceeds benefit the Heard Family Fund....
, tribute to Mark HeardMark HeardJohn Mark Heard was a record producer, folk-rock singer, and songwriter originally from Macon, Georgia, USA....
, 1996 - Slow Dark Train (Capricorn, 1997)
- To The Roof Of The Sky (Meat Market, 1998)
- Live At The 40 Watt (Paste, 1998)
- Free For Good (A Startled Chameleon, 1998, Europe-only release)
- Audible Sigh (True Tunes, 1999, pre-release)
- Cross the Big Pond (EP) (1999, Free For Good + extra track)
- Audible Sigh (Compass, 2000, wide release)
- Audible Sigh w/ Room Despair EP (Compass, 2000, limited release)
- Electromeo (EP) (2000, limited release)
- Summershine (Compass, 2001)
- Resplendent (Audibly Live) (2002)
See also
- Bill MalloneeBill MalloneeBill Mallonee is the songwriter and leader of Vigilantes of Love, an Americana/Alt-Country/Rock band from Athens, Georgia. Though the Vigilantes disbanded in 2001 and recently reformed in 2008, Mallonee continues writing, singing, and playing his music solo...
(including solo Discography) - Buddy MillerBuddy MillerBuddy Miller is a country singer, songwriter, musician, recording artist and producer, currently living in Nashville, Tennessee...
– producer, Audible Sigh (1999) - Music of Athens, GeorgiaMusic of Athens, GeorgiaThe music of Athens, Georgia, includes a wide variety of popular music and was an important part of the early evolution of alternative rock and New Wave. The city is well known as the home of chart-topping bands like R.E.M. and The B-52s, and several long-time indie rock groups...