JULY 16, 2009 ISSUE
Still Stumblin’ & Mumblin’
Ska and Reggae Outfit Bums Lie Returns to Boone Saloon July 25
Former Boone-based ska and reggae outfit Bums Lie will return to their old stomping grounds on Saturday, July 25, when the band plays Boone Saloon. Photo by John Darwin KurcWhen a group of friends and music students at ASU began jamming together in 2001, the local music scene was crowded with guitar-wielding jambands playing long, open-ended songs at virtually every venue in town. Instead of joining the ranks of the jammers, the band decided to go for a decidedly more urban, energetic sound that fused the sounds of reggae punk and ska. Bums Lie was born.
After a long absence from the local scene, Bums Lie will bring their raucous live show to Boone Saloon on Saturday, July 25. Former Bums Lie member Justin Butler will open with his new project, Analog Underground.
In 2002, Bums Lie began frequenting the High Country’s usual watering holes, cranking out sounds inspired by The Slackers, Prince Buster, Dennis Brown, Barrington Levy, Steel Pulse, NOFX and Gregory Isaacs, among others.
“It’s still kind of reggae-ska, but it’s not what you would consider traditional Jamaican reggae,” said founding member, guitarist and lead singer Cullen West.
Within 18 months of the band’s debut, Bums Lie was opening for reggae legends Culture, and shortly thereafter released their acclaimed album First Time Offender. The band has since opened up for Grammy award-winning artist Damien Marley at the Music Farm in Charleston, S.C. and Yellowman at the now defunct Ziggy’s in Winston Salem.
Originally an eight-piece band, graduations and other musical ambitions split Bums Lie, with multiple members joining reggae band Hope Massive to play more straightforward reggae. West would later also join Hope Massive, but continue performing with Bums Lie.
During this period of transition, several founding members moved to Charlotte, where the band is currently based. While regrouping, Bums Lie spent a year on hiatus trying to better define the sound, according to West.
“We decided not to stick with a certain genre and to just let the band be open to many different styles of music,” said West. “Ska and reggae are the foundation, but we build from there.”
In May, Bums Lie released Stumblin’ & Mumblin’, a live album recorded “one drunken night” at Charlotte’s Visulite Theatre. While the record was a triumph for the band, its release was bittersweet, as West dealt with the loss of his father around the same time.
“It kind of gave me an extra little bit of drive to push a little harder,” West said.
After nearly eight years together, West and his Bums Lie bandmates are as tight as ever, cranking out inspired and energetic original music. In the coming months, the group plans to continue touring behind Stumblin’ & Mumblin’, trying to spread their sound far and wide.
“We’re just trying to promote this album and push up North, out West and further down South towards Florida,” said West.
For more information on the show, call Boone Saloon at 828-264-1811 or click to www.BooneSaloon.com.
To hear music by Bums Lie, click to www.MySpace.com/bumslie.
Want To Go?
Date: Saturday, July 25
Time: 10:30 p.m.
Location: Boone Saloon
Cost: $5
Community Interest
News & Notes
Events
Arts & Entertainment
