The Hanyaks... (now on iTunes)

Like the Yellowstone Supervolcano or the New Madrid Fault, Monte Peck and his Hanyaks are the most powerful force of nature you haven't heard of. Playing well-crafted songs with riff rock sensibilities, the music is pop without the sugar coating, and all the more deadly because you never saw it coming.
The Hanyaks are the brainchild of frontman Monte Peck. Meaning hooligans, the name is a throwback to his Czech heritage. The one trait the ever-changing members share is the tendency to get a little rowdy.
Standing 6'6" in his cowboy boots, Peck looks more like a linebacker than a rockstar. Ironically, he taught himself to play guitar after being sidelined with a football injury. A native of Hallettsville, Texas, there wasn't much of an outlet for his musical expression. After playing his first paying gig at a biker bar in Victoria, Texas, he made his way to Austin in 2001 where he paid his dues.
Playing countless gigs, he was on stage at the infamous Black Cat Lounge the night it burned down. (The police ruled that his smokin' hotness was not a contributing factor.) He was creator and co-host of the successful acoustic showcase Shut Up and Sing that ran for almost three years. Now he hosts ((Sound Off)), a weekly social networking event for the entertainment industry. A multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, engineer and producer, Peck is nothing if not ambitious.
He is halfway through a projected quartet of albums slated to be released in successive Februaries ending with a definitive boxed set in 2013. His debut album, The Breakdown, was released February 3, 2009, on the fiftieth anniversary of the deaths of Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and the Big Bopper. Like a Parthian Shot is scheduled to be released February 2, 2010.
Following the CD release, Peck will once again be taking his show on the road when he plans to move to Lincoln, Nebraska. Tornado Alley seems to be a fitting home for him.