Big Jeter - "The Other White Trash"

Album review by George Schultz

Have you ever felt the uncontrollable urge to devoid yourself of any sense of fashion and parade around with nothing on but an old soiled pair of overalls and red doo-rag on your head? Have you ever, while brandishing this tattered denim jumpsuit, wanted nothing more than to relax in a rocking chair on your front porch with a banjo, a jug of moonshine and a songbook from yesterday’s “Alabama” tunes?

Well, never fear. You can keep on your fresh duds (ironically, “pre-faded denim” is currently in fashion), and attend a Big Jeter show to receive virtually the same effect. You won’t be able to get homemade moonshine from the bar, but you can probably get a workingman’s brew of choice, Pabst Blue Ribbon, which in terms of quality, is just about the same thing. As a matter of fact the kind of place where you might see Big Jeter is probably the kind of place where the only frosty adult beverage available is Pabst Blue Ribbon.

Big Jeter is a six-piece local band of thugs whose sole intention is to do nothing more than to cause you to spit milk through your nose in a fit of laughter.

Their music may be described in many ways: bluegrass, country blues and even alternative country which seems to be quite popular these days with bands such as the Old 97’s and a fanzine dedicated to this new genre of music called No Depression which boasts a layout similar to that of old punk rock music review publications.

Yet, even “alternative country” seems to be unfair description to place upon the band due to their obvious individuality which sets them aside from other musical genres of a similar caliber.

So, how can we best describe Big Jeter? The band themself claims that their musical style is “udder-swingin’ hillbilly funk” with musical influences that include “the 1951 flood of Argentine, Kansas.” If you haven’t realized that Big Jeter is more on the dark humor side of things than read on and you’ll understand.

The band claims to have come together one night after a Vee-Jays show in Kansas City, Kansas and ever since “the creative juices have been squirtin’ all over.”

The band claims that, “Things got a little hot after Jeter and Clem did some battery acid and fired up the John Deere one night, but not even a state manhunt, a bogus paternity lawsuit and a couple dozen restraining orders are going to keep Big Jeter from soilin’ the virtue of a town near you.” Obviously, Big jeter’s not fooling around with any pretensious love songs to offer the mainstream money-grubbers. No set of rigid Kansas family values seem safe from the destructive humor of Big Jeter.

Upon hearing the CD one might claim that the music itself resembles some sort of down-home-Alabama, moonshine swillin’ ballads with a set of honky tonk vocals that seem nearly capable of piercing an eardrum. But, the brutal assault on the senses is regulated by the band just enough to prevent you from punching the stop button on your CD player. Yet, the band might protest the aforementioned assessment and argue that Big Jeter “slams as hard as Dylan Klebold’s locker.”

Any group of people willing to make a joke of the Columbine shootings in Colorado is obviously not playing with a full deck of cards. But, don’t let the questionable mental stability of Big Jeter scare you away. These guys know what they’re doing.

Members of the band include Big Jeter, DJ Clem, Gladiola Ditchwater, Bo, Little Jeter, and P-Dawg Myers. Instruments used by the band include “milkin’ stools, a testicle crimper (typically used to castrate bulls), bag balm, churn, ridin’ crop, and a sow.” An acoustic guitar is also recognizable among this frenzy of obscure instrumentation.

Big Jeter has one demo release called “The Other White Trash” which was recorded in length at a barn in Paola, Kansas. Also, a full-length LP is said to be coming soon called “Jeter Christ Superstud.”

To contact Big Jeter e-mail gleeh@juno.com or call 432-2434.

--George Schultz