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The return of Twang Twang Shock-a-Boom
(Chris Searles, David Garza and Jeff Haley back in the early days of of Twang Twang Shock-a-Boom.)
It’s late 1989 and a trio named Twang Twang Shock-a-Boom goes from free shows on the West Mall of the University of Texas to packing the Cactus Café and eventually selling out 1,000-capacity Liberty Lunch. This is not how things are done in dues-paying Austin, so the backlash is immediate. Have they even heard of Townes Van Zandt?
Doesn’t matter. The charmingly naive trio of David Garza, Chris Searles and Jeff Haley put out a cassette called “Me So Twangy” that local record stores can barely keep on the shelves for more than a day. Big label interest. Columbia Records flies them to New York, but the kids crumble in the frying pan like taco meat. Thirteen months after their first busking session, it was all over.
Can the magic return 20 years later? This weekend, Twang Twang celebrates the release of a remixed and remastered deluxe CD version of ‘Me So Twangy’ with a pair of shows at the Cactus Café on Friday and Saturday. It’ll be a big night for babysitters.
Twang Twang Shock-a-Boom (with Slim Richey and Maggie Walters) performs at 9 p.m. Friday and Saturday at the Cactus Café, 2247 Guadalupe St. on the University of Texas campus. $10. 475-6599.
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