Mother Sixgun Biography

Few bands can successfully bridge the gap between the over-the-top, heavily made-up, leather-and-lace hair metal of the 80s and the heavier, self-deprecating, churning guitar noise of 90s grunge rock. OK, Guns N’ Roses could. But could a band really exist today — in the throes of teenaged pop-punks and post-punk hipsters — that visibly worships the heroes of the 70s, brings back the rock show of the 80s and produces the heavy guitar-centered compositions of the 90s, all with radio-ready hooks, danceable beats, and catchy melodies. Oh, but it does. Mother Sixgun lives.

Born and raised on the southern rock and metal giants of the 1970s and heavily inspired by the hard-rock/metal scene of the late 80s and early 90s, Mother Sixgun has crafted a sound of southern-fried groove finely meshed with no-nonsense, hard-rock riffage. Guns N’ Roses, Led Zeppelin, Ozzy Osbourne, Zakk Wylde, Jackyl, Motley Crue, The Eagles, and AC/DC are on this band’s diverse list of unknowing mentors.
Originally formed by grunge-loving, metal-head childhood friends Brandon Gentry and Jake Boschen, Mother Sixgun began as many bands do — with teenaged jam sessions. Around this time, Chad Butrum decided to pick up a bass and the three friends began jamming and writing songs in Boschen’s basement. In the fall of 1998, to aid the vision and musical direction of the band, Gentry mentioned bringing on Jon Coulter as a possible lead guitarist. Unsure about the idea, Boschen and Butrum eventually agreed auditioned him. He passed, and the band’s lineup was short just one crucial piece, a singer. Being able to find less than a handful of singers in the city with similar influences, tryouts were grim. Enter high school acquaintance Jake Fritz. Hearing the band was looking for a singer, Fritz approached Gentry and demanded an audition. With his raw vocal style and energetic stage presence, Fritz was just what the band was looking for, and the lineup was complete.

After four years together and a few attempts at recording a working demo, the band buckled down and headed into the studio for a few weeks of intensive, late-night sessions. Recorded and produced at the Lodge Studios in Indianapolis in November and December 2004, and engineered by Lodge technician Corey Miller, their self-titled EP includes five hard-rock tunes written by guitarist Brandon Gentry and lead vocalist Jake Fritz. “Dead Where You Stand” stirs its listener with an attention-grabbing guitar riff and then delivers a wake-up call to those content with life as they know it. “Kickin’ the Dog” follows, serving up stream-of-consciousness pop angst. Crowd favorite “Nothing to Lose” is one of the band’s oldest compositions; it toys with irony and self-loathing, combining them with heavy guitar and catchy, sing-a-long lyrics in one fell swoop. “Candi Rose” opens with its signature cowbell and is a danceable, light-hearted anthem detailing a more-than-successful night at a gentlemen’s club. “Powers That Be” is much darker, concluding the disc with a healthy dose of scorn.

They’ve played venues all over Indiana and Kentucky, including The Patio, The Melody Inn, and The Emerson Theater. In August 2004, they shared a bill with .38 Special, Jackyl, and fellow locals Smoke Ring at the annual Steel Horse Stampede.

Once said to be "the bastard sons of Motley Crue and Molly Hatchet," these boys are sure to blow the doors clean off the truck with their supersonic arsenal of twin Gibsons, over-the-top vocals, and own breed of blue-collar, Midwestern metal. Photos and further information are available on the official Web site at http://www.mothersixgun.com.