Those Poor Bastards
American gothic country band
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Those Poor Bastards are an American gothic country band based in Madison, Wisconsin.[1] Since 2004 they have released twelve full-length studio albums and seven EPs,[2] and have toured in both North America and Europe.
Those Poor Bastards | |
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| Background information | |
| Origin | Madison, Wisconsin, United States |
| Genres | |
| Years active | 2004–present |
| Label | Tribulation Recording Co. |
| Members |
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The band is composed of Lonesome Wyatt (vocals, guitar) and The Minister (banjo, bass, percussion, backing vocals). They are secretive and reveal very little information about themselves.[3]
Background
Lonesome Wyatt vaguely described his childhood as very isolated,[4] having few friends at school and "going the whole summer" without seeing them, and that his parents "were insane".[5] He attended Stoughton High School (Wisconsin),[6] graduating in 1997. Inspired by Nick Cave and Johnny Cash, he began to record music in his parents' basement, where he began a solo gothic folk project called Lonesome Wyatt and the Holy Spooks before disbanding it in 2002,[7][5] although the group was revived in 2010.
History
While looking for a band name in the early 2000s, Wyatt discovered the phrase "those poor bastards" in a book, and decided to use it as the name for his band formed with another unidentified member known as The Minister.[8] In late 2005, his father was alleged to have contacted him for fear that he was a werewolf because he could not remember where he had gotten mud on his shoes. Wyatt has been questioned about the incident in various interviews.[9][5] The Minister veils his face in all official band photography, does not perform live and has not revealed his identity.[4] He has, however, played live before as seen in this footage as well as older official photos.[10] He also does not wear a veil here. For live performances, Wyatt performs with a third musician, Vincent Presley, on drums, Moog, and keyboard. At live shows, Presley is known to play the Moog or keyboard with drums simultaneously.
Their song "Pills I Took" was covered by Hank Williams III on his landmark 2006 release, Straight to Hell.
Musical style and influences
Those Poor Bastards has been described as gothic country.[1] The band performs a style that derives from gothic rock and traditional Americana, often with themes in the genre of murder ballads. Their lyrics focus on themes of sin, damnation, misery, religion and death.[1][11][12]
Discography
- Studio albums
- Songs of Desperation (2005)
- Hellfire Hymns (2007)
- The Plague (2008)
- Satan Is Watching (2008)
- Gospel Haunted (2010)
- Behold the Abyss (2012)
- Vicious Losers (2014)
- Sing It Ugly (2016)
- Inhuman Nature (2018)
- Evil Seeds (2019)
- Old Time Suffering (2021)
- God Awful (2022)
- Back to the Primitive (2024)
EPs
- Country Bullshit (2004)
- Pills I Took (2006) (split with Hank Williams III)
- Black Dog Yodel (2009)
- Abominations (2009)
- Gospel Outtakes (2010)
- Is This Hell? (2011)
- Necrosphere (2016)