The Dexateens are a five-piece
rock and roll band out of
Tuscaloosa,
Alabama.
History
1998-2010
The Dexateens began as a four-piece band in 1998 in
Tuscaloosa,
Alabama,
with co-lead singer-songwriters and guitarists Elliott McPherson and John Smith, with drummer Craig "Sweet Dog" Pickering and bassist Matt Patton rounding out the quartet.
Patton pulls double duty, as he is also a full-time member of the
Drive-By Truckers,
with whom The Dexateens have toured in the past.
In its earliest form, the band was known for its punk shows at The Chukker and Egan's.
McPherson said The Dexateens' name originated from a
guitar pick
A guitar pick (American English) is a plectrum used for guitars. Picks are generally made of one uniform material—such as some kind of plastic (nylon, Delrin, celluloid), rubber, felt, tortoiseshell, wood, metal, glass, tagua, or stone. They ...
Smith's brother/roommate had signed by
Dexter Romweber, "DEX," which subliminally stuck with him when thinking up names for the band. Once they had the name, they tried to change it to something else (The Highwatts, Red Dirt Five, Sweet Dog) but the name stuck.
Starting in 2004 with their debut self-titled record,
The Dexateens have released two albums on
Estrus Records and three albums
Skybucket Records.
Their 2004 self-titled debut and 2005 followup, ''Red Dust Rising,'' were both produced by
Tim Kerr (Big Boys, Poison 13, Jack O'Fire, Lord High Fixers).
In 2006, The Dexateens released the EP, ''Teenager,'' on Dell'orso Records. The record is made up of material from 2000 and consists of the band's earlier punk rock sound.
2007's full-length record, ''Hardwire Healing,'' features the acoustic song "Nadine," a song notable for its portrayal of devastation.
The record features artwork by Jimmi Hole and was mastering by JJ Golden.
Patterson Hood (
Drive-By Truckers) and
David Barbe co-produced the record, which was recorded in
Athens,
Georgia, at Chase Park Transduction Studios.
Also in 2007, original Dexateens drummer Craig "Sweet Dog" Pickering left the band
and Brian Gosdin joined the band on drums.
In 2008, the band released the record, ''Lost and Found,'' on Skybucket Records. It was initially released as a free digital download with a purchase-able physical product released later.
They recorded 2009's ''Singlewide'' with
Tim Kerr producing over a three-day period in Birmingham.
The artwork is by Mike Egan.
In 2008, Brad Armstrong (13ghosts) joined the band, also on guitar and backing vocals.
They appeared at the 2009
Austin City Limits Music Festival.
In 2010, singer-songwriter and guitarist John Smith left the band. In July 2010, The Dexateens announced the band was disbanding.
2013-present
In 2013, the band returned from a two-year hiatus
with the EP ''Sunsphere,'' which is named after the
Knoxville,
Tennessee, observation tower that was built for the
1982 World's Fair
The 1982 World's Fair, officially known as the Knoxville International Energy Exposition (KIEE) and simply as Energy Expo '82 and Expo '82, was an international exposition held in Knoxville, Tennessee, United States. Focused on energy and ele ...
.
''Teenage Hallelujah'' was released October 7, 2016. McPherson said the record is inspired by the
C.S. Lewis novel ''
The Screwtape Letters.''
The record was recorded in 2011 in McPherson's barn and was produced and engineered by Bronson Tew (
Seratones
Seratones are an American soul rock band formed in Shreveport, Louisiana in 2013. The group's original line-up consisted of AJ Haynes (vocals, guitar), Connor Davis (guitar), Adam Davis (bass guitar), and Jesse Gabriel (drums). Initially, a fav ...
,
Jimbo Mathus,
Water Liars), and features liner notes by
WFMU's Kevin Nutt.
''Teenage Hallelujah'' was a shift for the band, as guitarist and vocalist Lee Bains moved on to work on his own band,
Lee Bains III and the Glory Fires.
The band welcomed the addition of
Taylor Hollingsworth (Dead Fingers,
Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band) on lead guitar and backing vocals.
A new record called Struggler was recently tracked at Dial Back Sound Studios in Water Valley, MS on May 19, 2017 and is currently in post production. It will be released on Cornelius Chapel Records in 2017.
Cornelius Chapel Records
In 2013, the band started the record label, Cornelius Chapel Records, which McPherson and the extended band family run.
Bands on the label, in addition to The Dexateens, include Beitthemeans, Brad Armstrong, Vulture Whale, AdamAdam, and Chooglin.
Other projects
In addition to the record label, McPherson works as a cabinet-maker and woodworker in Tuscaloosa.
He is involved in various music projects including the band Rattler
and has a solo project he is working on. The rest of the band members are also involved in various bands.
Current band members
* Elliott McPherson, lead vocals, guitar & songwriting
* Matt Patton, bass
* Brian Gosdin, drums
* Ronnie Lee Gipson, guitar and/or fill-in bass
* Brad Armstrong, guitar
Discography
;Albums
* 2004: ''The Dexateens'' (
Estrus Records)
* 2005: ''Red Dust Rising'' (Estrus Records)
* 2007: ''Hardwire Healing'' (
Skybucket Records)
* 2008: ''Lost and Found'' (Skybucket Records)
* 2009: ''Singlewide'' (Skybucket Records)
* 2016: ''Teenage Hallelujah'' (Cornelius Chapel Records, CCR/009)
* TBD: ''Stars In Bars'' (Cornelius Chapel Records) − upcoming release
;EPs
* 2006: ''Teenager'' (Dell'orso Records)
* 2013: ''Sunsphere'' (Cornelius Chapel)
;Compilations
* 1999: ''A Fistful of Rock N' Roll Vol. 2'' (Tee Pee) − "Teenagers Piss Off" aka "Teenager"
* 2005: ''Boxcars on 1st, Vol. I'' − "Talladega Tornado"
* 2009: ''Lake Fever Sessions'' (Tugboat Productions (video) / Lake Fever Productions (audio)) − "Down Low," "Missionary Blues," "New Boy"
* 2010: ''The Country Way Digital Vol. 1'' (American Songwriter) − "Granddaddy's Mouth"
;Video
*
*
** ''Old Bryce:''
*
References
External links
*
The Dexateensat Cornelius Chapel Records
*
*
The Dexateensat
last.fm
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dexateens
Musical quintets
Musical groups established in 1998
Rock music groups from Alabama
American hard rock musical groups
American punk rock groups
Tuscaloosa, Alabama