March 13th, 2026, 8:00PM
Beggar Weeds with Frankenfinger and Hangfire
@ Wild Heaven Garden Club
Beggar Weeds
When the Beggar Weeds were touring the country back in the late 1980s and early 1990s, they would drive hours out of their way to visit some bizarre roadside attraction or eat at the perfect greasy-spoon diner. “We were living on five bucks a day, but we would drive for miles in the wrong direction and use up so much gas just to visit the Nut Lady in Old Lyme, Connecticut.” says Alan Cowart, who plays drums for the Jacksonville, Florida, trio. The band loves the unexpected and finds inspiration in those little quirks of Americana nestled in the remotest corners of the country.
Beggar Weeds write songs about little tragedies: nothing as big as a presidential assassination, but more mundane injustices, more common disappointments. They find everyday tragedies in growing up (“Graduating”), suffering your family’s prejudices (“Daddy’s Little Angel”), reckoning with your roots (“Picolata”), and the accumulation of unwanted stuff at the local garbage dump (“Sunbeam Mountain”). Their songs sound like only these three young men from the Sunshine State could have dreamed them up.
Musically, the band are collectors and connoisseurs of the offbeat, taking parts from their favorite bands—the jangle of R.E.M., the almost-falling-apart-ness of the Replacements, the rumbling melodicism of Hüsker Dü—and combining them with hardscrabble country and rustic folk. Then they play it all loud and fast. “We want to do something different, play a little harder, chase our own ideas,” says Watson, who sings and plays guitar and harmonica. “We’re combining all those things, punk but also pop and country and folk. I remember someone described us as the Everly Brothers on speed.”
Opening for national acts that came through Jacksonville—including X, the Meat Puppets, the Dead Milkmen, and drivin n cryin—the trio very quickly developed a reputation for rambunctious shows where anything could happen and often did. They dance and shimmy constantly, switch instruments with each other, and emphasize volume, speed, feral energy. “We have to pick the right shoes,” says Leuthold. “We need to find shiny bottom shoes so we can move around more smoothly.
On the strength of the live reputation and their EP, the trio toured around the South and further afield, often sharing the bill with their friends the Chickasaw Mudd Puppies. That Athens, Georgia, band was working on an album with Michael Stipe, and singer Brant Slay played Sure Pants A lot for the R.E.M. frontman. He was instantly smitten. The band holed up with Stipe and filmmaker Jim McKay at John Keane Studios in Athens, Georgia, where they recorded six songs. Songs like “Linden & Mary” (about the hoarders next door) and “Picolata” (about a town between St. Augustine and Jacksonville) retain their essential eccentricities, while “Ship” combines Cowart’s hoedown with Leuthold and Watson’s Byrdsy harmonies to create an unexpectedly majestic chorus.
Tragedy in U.S. History today sounds unique in its combination of sounds and personalities, the missing link between the underground music scene of the 1980s and the alt-country movement of the 1990s.
“Beggar Weeds couple keening voices with authentic lyrics that
echo with the tradition of rural southern storytelling. If all the
pathos, humor, joy, beauty, dichotomies, and extremes of the
Deep South could exist in six songs, you’re holding it in your
hands.”
Michael Stipe, R.E.M.
FRANKENFINGER
Frankenfinger, the 90s indie band that fans will remember from CBGB, The Knitting Factory, The High Hat (Athens), Club Down Under and their debut single "Minuet," is back!
Kathy Denton, Drew Watson, Woody Compton and Brian Crum (The Intoxicators!) kick things off at the sold-out Tallahassee Punk Pioneers concert series this March. Reissue vinyl singles, a new EP and a recently-remastered "Live at CBGB" collection are set for May 2026 release.
"Powerful, kick-ass, atmospheric and mind-warping all at once. These folks have been compared to early Pixies meets the Gun Club played at half speed. Crazy, reverb-laden guitars, awesome Hazel-esque harmonies, and sunstroked, ultra-real lyrics just start to describe this Florida band. Too cool.”
(Subterranean, Berkeley, CA)
"Drew Watson’s fuzzy, feedback-ridden guitars create a massive buzz and howl. Bassist Kathy Denton contributes some finely warped rhythm ... a high-wattage mix of hauntingly beautiful melody and bone-crunching noise. FRANKENFINGER is the band POLVO wishes they could be.”
(That Devil Music: Archive Reviews: Scrawl Music Zine #2)
"Fun stuff. Semi-psychedelic, hummable pop music with great fuzzy guitars and male/female vocals that remind me of Lazy. Even the lyrics are great (‘I like your Mom / She’s got a nice ass / I like your Dad / He doesn't talk too much’). This trio doesn't take themselves too seriously, yet they come up with some seriously good music that holds up to many repeated listenings. I want MORE!”
(babysue.com)
HANGFIRE
An Atlanta Rock N’ Roll duo. We wanna have a good time & and that’s just what we’re gonna do.
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