Wailin' Elroys

BIOGRAPHYThe Wailin Elroys were a juke joint hillbilly band playing out of Athens, Ohio USA that felt as comfortable in the confines of a smoke-filled punk rock dive bar as a country music dance hall. The Elroys drew on the influence of the Ramones as much as Hank Williams or Chuck Berry while still keeping to a traditional honky-tonk line-up. Formed in 2002 (and disbanding in 2007), the Elroys were founded by Bram Riddlebarger (vocals, flat top guitar, songwriting) and Justin Rayner (doghouse bass fiddle). "Preacher" Zeb Dewar soon joined up on take-off guitar and the Elroys added Johnny Borchard on non-pedal steel guitar a year or so later. The Elroys also had numerous other sidemen or women over the years including but not limited to: Rockne Riddlebarger (lap steel), "Sugar" Wildman nee Bayer (upright bass), Will Perkins (fiddle), and Bernie Nau (accordion). Tracks from the Elroys full-length debut album Cheap Motel (featuring the trio of Riddlebarger, Rayner, and Dewar) received airplay in the United States, Canada, Australia, and throughout Europe, and the record reached no.21 on the Freeform American Roots Chart for January 2004 and no.22 on the Euro Americana Charts for February 2004. The Elroys signed to Rhythm Bomb Records (Germany) in February 2004. Cheap Motel was re-released and internationally distributed by Rhythm Bomb in June of 2004. The Elroys toured Europe in March and April of 2005, playing eight dates spanning from Amsterdam to Berlin and recording one session at the Lightning Recording Service Studio in Berlin. The Elroys have been featured in numerous zines both in the US and Europe including Rock N Roll Purgatory (Issue no.13). The band was included on a compilation jointly released by Rhythm Bomb Records and El Toro Records, Perfect For Parties, in 2004. The Elroys are also a featured band on the January 2005 online compilation by the Aquabear Legion (www.aquabearlegion.com). Songs from Cheap Motel also appear on the soundtrack for the Smokin Shutdown no.8 Heroes, Art, Hot Rods, Kustom Kulture & Rock n Roll DVD. A split 7 vinyl record was released in April 2005 on the RockNRoll Purgatory label that features two songs each from the Elroys and one-man folk/punk movement Ghostwriter, from Austin, Texas. The Elroys released their second full-length CD, "Route 33", on Rhythm Bomb Records in July 2005 and continued to tour the US in support of the record. Route 33 reached no.12 on the Euro Americana Chart and no.2 on the Rockabilly Music Association Chart for January 2006. The Elroys returned to Europe for a 5 week tour in the summer of 2006, recording another record, and playing several major festivals, including the Hangar Rockin' Festival in Switzerland, the SJOCK festival in Belgium, Midsummer Festival in Finland, and the Hot Rod Festival in Germany. The latest CD "On The Bum" was released as Bram Riddlebarger & The Wailin' Elroys on Rhythm Bomb Records in May 2007.