Apache Relay is a band that happened to be in the right place at the right time. The Nashville-based crew play indie rock with a heavy Americana influence–a sound that’s been taking over pop radio in recent years with the advent of artists like the Lumineers and Mumford & Sons. But Apache Relay have been deeply into American roots music for years. The group existed years before frontman Michael Ford, Jr. solidified the group’s lineup in 2009, and their debut album 1988 from that year came out long before anyone expected a resurgence in rootsy sounds.
“It’s weird because it was a completely unexplained thing,” says Ford on the recent Americana boom. “I don’t know if it’s lucky or more of a coincidence–it wasn’t something we were shooting for or thinking about. It just happened.”
Nonetheless, they’ve benefited from that sound’s popularity, scoring several dates opening for Mumford & Sons and playing festivals like Bonnaroo and the Newport Folk Festival. They’ve released two albums so far and are currently touring in support of an upcoming, self-titled third, which includes a stop in Eugene this Thursday, March 27 at Cozmic Pizza with The Lonely Wild and The Soil & The Sun.
The group came together in 2009 at Belmont University in Nashville. Initially, Ford hired the Apache Relay–then a trio led by guitarist Mike Harris–as a backup band for his own group. (1988 was credited to Michael Ford, Jr. and the Apache Relay.) The now-quartet quickly discovered their musical chemistry and blossomed into a full-on band.
“We made a record pretty quickly and started touring on that record,” says Ford. “We got a booking agent and things kind of came together from there, and really we’ve just been touring and making records since then.”
The band’s long history reflects in their sound. Though they’re hardly avant-garde, Apache Relay sound nothing like anything on the charts. While 1988 was stripped-down and minimal, their sophomore effort American Nomad was a spacious mix of shimmering indie rock, rustic string arrangements and gargantuan production that recalls the peak of Phil Spector’s 1960s work. Their whole sound orbits around Ford’s stretchy, expressive voice, a far cry from the recent pop-Americana singles that favor massive, shout-along anthems.
Though Nashville is most famous for country music, a central pillar of the American roots music tradition, The Apache Relay are more indebted to rock music. Springsteen is an idol to the band, who covered the Nebraska track “State Trooper” on American Nomad. In addition, the band has found more favor among Nashville’s emerging rock scene than its world-famous country scene.
“There is a lot of country in Nashville but really what’s happening there right now is a lot of really good garage rock, punk, rock ‘n’ roll,” says Ford. “We’ve got some friends in that scene, so we’re supported. But we all love country music as well–I personally love classic and traditional country.”
The Apache Relay play Cozmic on Thursday, March 27. Show starts at 8:00. Tickets are $10 advance and $12 the day of the show.