The Ponderosa Aces. Photos courtesy of Mike Maddux.
Come next February, Long Beach will see representation at the 3rd annual Ameripolitan Music Awards in Austin. The Ponderosa Aces, a country-hybrid band fronted by Long Beach native Mike Maddux, is up for an award in the Outlaw category of the relatively new brand that is devoted to recognizing roots-influenced DIY musicians fighting the grain of overproduced country pop. So the band is rallying support from its hometown to go online and vote.
“I don’t know how we got nominated,” said Maddux, looking perplexed. “That was a huge surprise. We just got an email one day.”
Maddux was exposed to old-style country music at an early age through his father, who immersed himself in 60s traditional country and 70s country rock. But in his early years of fiddling with the guitar, which he picked up at age 12, his repertoire largely consisted of classic rock and punk rock, influenced by the local all-ages shows he frequented. It wasn’t until his early 20s that Maddux discovered a newfound appreciation for country music.
“You know when you get a sound stuck in your head and can’t get it out? For me, it was the sound of the pedal steel guitar, which is predominantly used in country,” Maddux said. “That’s my baby right there.”
He fell deeper into country as he progressed through other types of guitars popular in country: the slide guitar, bottleneck style and lap style. At the time, he fronted a blues band called the Working Man’s Blues Band, an open-ended jam project that lasted seven years.
“All I wanted to play was old Robert Johnson shit, Clapton, Cream, old stuff,” he said. “Then I start to go, I’m a white guy in my 20s and I’m writing blues songs — what the hell am I doing? Something about this doesn’t feel genuine. I’m trying to hone my craft but it all feels very contrived.”
So he leaned into country and wrote a whole new batch of songs, many of which are still in the Ponderosa Aces’ repertoire. The current iteration of the Ponderosa Aces includes Maddux on vocals and guitar, “Bigshed” on bass, Alex “Hoss Griggs on guitar, Brandon Conway on pedal steel and Arthur Rodriguez on drums.
Officially formed in 2012, The Ponderosa Aces originally intended to play straight traditional country music, Maddux explained. But the group’s sound naturally evolved outside the bounds of country with the varying influence of each member’s own musical taste from R&B and soul to rock and jazz.
With an injection of punk rock and psychedelia, the Ponderosa Aces’ sound has earned descriptions like “West Coast psychedelic honky tonk” or “cow punk” — it’s still decidedly country but with a harder edge. It’s a unique niche here in Long Beach, the ultimate melting pot of genres, Maddux said.
“The scene is always evolving in Long Beach — it’s always been evolving,” Maddux said. “So to have something we can put our mark on just feels kind of cool. In general there’s a really good folk scene going on here — the country scene can evolve from there. You see some of these folk bands turn into a country-influenced band. I think we’re still pretty much one of the only country bands here in Long Beach, at least that plays regularly.
While Long Beach is receptive to the Ponderosa Aces’ twang, Maddux said he is looking forward to reaching a country audience. With their first full-length album in tow — currently being mixed and mastered at 3 Pt. Studios — the band is planning a small tour for the first time through Texas and Tennessee in the weeks leading up to the Ameripolitan award show next February.
“This would be exposure to a large group of people that are into the style of music that we play,” he said.
Voting is open until Dec. 26. To vote, visit http://www.ameripolitan.com/.