The Lonetones keep company with mix of fans

Photo by brianwagnerphotography.com

The Lonetones

KNOXVILLE — Knoxville's Lonetones are deeply rooted to East Tennessee. With jobs and families cementing the band to mostly local outings, the group seems to embrace home, performing music that is Appalachian at its core.

The inherently traditional aura of its sound, however, in no way limits its massive absorption of influences from around the world, drawing comparisons to bands of other genres in other hemispheres. Tonight the socially conscious act will perform for a global cause, benefitting the children of Haiti.

There is no denying the folk base of The Lonetone's sound, with musical renaissance man Sean McCollough employing an arsenal of traditional instruments and the band's front porch-vocal harmonies. Despite its mountain-folk heritage, the group has been likened to a number of indie-rock outfits, the most abstract of which being the key-heavy Scottish act Belle and Sebastian. Perhaps more noticeably, the Lonetones are reminiscent of Swedish indie-poppers Acid House Kings had they been reared in Melungeon territory.

Ever open to listener interpretation, the group is accessible to a wide array of fans and comfortably fits nearly any venue Knoxville can offer.

"I love to drone," McCollough points out. "I drone on the banjo, the mandolin, the guitar and keyboards. I love finding one or two notes that I can play through an entire song and then build layers on top of that. One band I associate with this idea is The Velvet Underground. Their music has heavily influenced what we think of as indie-rock. So perhaps this is related to where the term indie-folk has come from.

"Of course, the demographic draw at different venues is a reality - younger folks come to an 11 o'clock show at the (Preservation) Pub; older folks come to an 8 o'clock show at Barley's. But, as musical styles continue to mix and create this wonderful mish-mash that we call American music, I really think that the distance between what can happen at the WDVX Blue Plate Special at noon and what goes on at the Pilot Light at midnight is really not as far as some people might think."

"I marvel at the diverse fan base The Lonetones gather," adds vocalist/guitarist Steph Gunnoe. "All ages, all persuasions - festivals are usually a good fit for us for this reason. We have played at the Pilot Light only once before, and I would rate it highly as a stage to be free on. We have probably played the most shows on WDVX and have a real home there, a welcoming audience that permits our experimentation. We kind of tailor our sound to the venue - clean it or dirty it up musically."

With two albums to their credit since 2003, The Lonetones are gradually accumulating tracks for a third they hope to release later this year. Due to the band's low-pressure, DIY approach to recording, albums tend to sprawl a lengthy period of time, which may account for the discernible evolution between and within each record.

"We're slowly beginning to record our next album," McCollough notes. "We have recorded our last two at home and will do so again. It gives us the luxury of taking our time and experimenting."

For tonight's gig, The Lonetones will be joined by Kevin Abernathy, a familiar face bringing an unfamiliar aspect to the group's dynamic, adding his electric guitar to the band's earthy sound.

The Lonetones will perform at Pilot Light in a benefit for the Haitian Pedagogy Institute. Co-founders Sara Elizabeth Malley and Kymberle Kaser put HPI together with the mission of funding and establishing self-sustaining schools and free secondary education for the children of Haiti.

BLUE ON BLUE: Saturday WDVX's Blue Plate Special hosts a special five-hour bluegrass edition of its live show and webcast, featuring Big Country's Empty Bottle, Kentucky Grass Project, Paleface, James McMurtry, and Morgan O'Kane with Ferd Moyse. The free show kicks off at noon.

GOLDEN BOYS: Brooklyn trio Monogold returns to Knoxville Monday, playing Pilot Light with Tiny Victories and Oversat. The show is slated for 10 p.m. and costs $5.

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