Mulehead White Water party to kick off 1st CD in 11 years

Mulehead is back.

And not just for a show or two, as they have over the years. No. The revered, bar-rocking, alt-country quartet has returned with a stellar new album that sounds as good as anything from its storied past.

"I had a bunch of songs that I couldn't really fit into solo projects," says frontman Kevin Kerby while strolling down Little Rock's Kavanaugh Boulevard last week, "and I realized that they were actually Mulehead songs."

So, for about two years, Kerby and the rest of Mulehead -- drummer Geoff Curran, guitarist Dave Raymond and bassist Brent LaBeau -- worked the songs into shape, emerging with the album Forever Out of Tune.

Produced by Curran and featuring the 10 tracks Kerby had in his pocket along with Raymond's "Up All Night," Forever Out of Tune should bring a smile to anyone who has missed the band, whose last studio effort was 2004's Finer Thing, and to new fans as well.

Ranging from the early Wilco-like thump of "No Room for Fiction"; a song about the joy of threadbare clothes and finding a $20 bill you didn't know you had ("Churchcoat"); and the title cut's smiling tribute to well-loved Little Rock luthier Tim Quetermous, who died in 2008, Forever Out of Tune overflows with bitingly clever, rootsy, torn flannel and greasy denim rockers.

"Lyrically, they are probably more traditional Mulehead subject matter," Kerby says of these new songs. "But they are definitely in a different style [than on previous albums]. It's less twangy."

It's is being released on Max Recordings, the Arkansas-centric label run by Burt Taggart.

"Kevin's always been a great writer and the band has always more than matched anything he threw at them," Taggart says. "Forever Out of Tune keeps that trajectory going. I think the thing that jumps out about this record, though, is the energy. They cut a lot of it live and I think that gives it a great spirit."

The album's not out nationwide until April 28, but the band is having a special record release party Friday at White Water Tavern, so local fans can grab a copy of the disc early.

"There ought to be some advantage to living in Little Rock," Kerby, 45, says wryly, "even if it's just to get a Mulehead record before anyone else."

There is also a campaign on Pledgemusic.com, where fans can buy everything from digital downloads of Forever Out of Tune, to signed CDs, records, signed posters, lyric sheets, woodcuts made by Kerby and even private concerts by the band or Kerby.

The Pledgemusic campaign is different from, say, Kickstarter, Kerby says, because the band isn't asking fans to fund the project. The music and materials are already produced.

"It's sort of a philosophical thing," he says about his aversion to Kickstarter. "I don't want to sell something that doesn't exist. That can be sort of tricky." With Pledgemusic, he says, "I have the product in my hand, and you can order it, if you can, and it would help Burt make some of his money back. Though I don't think Burt has ever really worried about recouping his money."

Information on products and prices involved with Forever Out of Tune is available at pledgemusic.com/projects/mulehead.

As for touring, Kerby, who played the Last Chance Records showcase at South by Southwest in Austin, Texas, last month says the band isn't eyeing any major jaunts, although there may be a trip to his native Texas (he moved to Searcy in 1988) this summer if everyone's schedules line up.

"The goal is to do a week in Texas, even if it kills us," he says.

Weekend on 04/02/2015