Saturday 3/22/14 $5
If you travel on Interstate 15 between the Bluffdale State Prison (homeof famous Mormon murderers Mark Hoffman and the LaffertyBrothers) and the wired little meth hamlet of Nephi, UT, you will find aconfederation of sleepy little towns that make up the torpid urbansprawl better known as Utah County. Utah County also goes by thecharming nom de plomb of ‘Happy Valley’– but it is anything but happy. With the worlds largest per capita use of both Prozac andRitalin, the County’s dark and menacing underbelly is cleverly hidden by its legions of seemingly happy citizenry painfully grinning like crazed Cheshire cats. But just scratch underneath that chipper facade, and you will find a people who are just one pill away from sucking on the end of a twelve gauge.
It is in this climate that The Utah County Swillers were formed. This is not a band made up of healthy (or hygienic) people. Sweatin’ Willy,the lead guitarist and singer of the band is a janitor at a local high school where he spends the better part of the day oogling underage girls. Derwood, the bass player, works at a brewery and has been irreversibly affected by excessive consumption of the product which he has dedicated his life to. Guitar Johnny spends time raking in a killing at the Wendover Hold em’ tables. Nika, the drummer, well– he’s special.
But despite their personal ‘issues’ the Utah County Swillers have been able to draw heavily on the history
and culture of Utah to create a unique sound. With songs that deal with such diverse subjects as 1booze,
pills, polygamy, more booze, more polygamy, and more pills, the Swillers have truly captured the twisted
zeitgeist that is…Utah County. – A.V. Gorgon