Grange Grunge? -- Alt Is Country's New Guerrilla Movement, And It Seems To Be Burgeoning In Ballard

Alt country - also known as alternative country, hard country, insurgent country, progressive country, grange, cow punk and country rock - has been the "next big thing" since Gram Parsons introduced The Byrds to country music in the mid-1960s. The popular music press has been looking for the "next big scene" to replace Seattle grunge since at least 1993. Ironically, both have coalesced, at least to a degree, in Ballard.

Naysayers claim alt country came and went a year ago, but the burgeoning plunk 'n' punk has recently gotten significant attention in Billboard, USA Today and a number of major dailies. Cities where it's become most prevalent are Austin, Texas; Ann Arbor, Mich.; Chapel Hill, N.C.; Chicago, New York, and Seattle. Here the outpost most mentioned is Ballard's Tractor Tavern. That it's become a focal point for bands and fans is kind of a fluke, says owner Dan Cowan.

"Ed Beeson (former Backstage owner) kept telling me these bands worked best in the smaller, more intimate clubs. We're very casual and that helped. This music doesn't really surround itself with the hype you get in a larger club. It's a combination of a lot of different things happening independently and coming together all at once. The bands do like the room and the people who show up here show up for the music, not because they think there's `a scene in Ballard'."

The Tractor isn't the only local club featuring alt country. The Backstage has long presented the likes of Son Volt, Wilco and Jimmie Dale Gilmore. The Little Red Hen in Green Lake, a country-music outpost, recently began presenting alt country on Thursdays. The Crop Circles play tonight. Even alternative rock clubs such as The Crocodile Cafe and Moe's have strayed into country. A fan magazine, too

Like any musical movement worth validating, alt country has its own publication. No Depression was started by Seattle freelance writer Peter Blackstock and former Rocket editor Grant Alden, named after an online message board named after an album by alt country icon Uncle Tupelo, which was named after a song by the Carter Family.

"We started in September '95," said Blackstock. "We published quarterly our first year and are bimonthly now. We switched partly because we thought we'd be able to put out smaller issues, but we use up to 50 writers an issue and they're pretty much the same size, so I guess we've grown."

Blackstock said alt country includes anyone from rock-based upstarts to elder statesmen such as Johnny Cash and Merle Haggard, who had fallen out of favor with the Garth Brooks audience.

"It's in our best interests to keep alternative country completely open and not be restrictive like a radio format is. It's a mix of a lot of things and different directions. We just see a common ground."

Which is why alt can include the new Western swing of Grammy-nominated BR5-49 or Cash covering songs by Soundgarden and Beck. Gillian Welch, a West Los Angeles daughter of TV comedy writers, performs deeply evocative depression-era laments, while Sub Pop'srock hounds The Supersuckers have recorded a country album and worked with country bad boy Steve Earle. They will open for Waylon Jennings in two shows March 19 at the Backstage. Alt is as much a musical melting pot as the country that fostered it.

Seattle has hometown alt acts as well. The Picketts are "king of the hill," according to Blackstock, but there are others.

One is Gary Heffern and his band, who have taken over Wednesday nights at the Tractor for the "Hank (Williams) To Heffern" showcase.

"I came from punk rock," said Heffern. "What I saw as a critical turning point was when Rank & File formed (in 1981). It was one of the most punk-rock things I ever saw. It completely slapped the face of hard-core punk.

"To me, the words of a song should be heard," he continued. "That's what I liked about the Clash. There are stories in there, not just slogans. I know the word `Americana' has been greatly overused, but it fits this." Radio play, gradual growth

Blackstock said KCMU-FM (90.3) plays the most alt country on Seattle-area radio. Despite radio support, he doesn't expect a huge hit to suddenly raise alternative country consciousness.

"I see gradual, steady growth. There are a lot of people hoping for a hit as big as "Smells Like Teen Spirit," but I doubt it. I want to see these acts do well enough to play music for a living. Bands can succeed at a reasonable level with sales of 50,000 records. I don't think the goal is for all of these bands to sell millions of records, but I sometimes worry that's probably what the interested major labels are thinking."

For the most part, the bands, their small indie labels and people such as Blackstock got involved for the love of the music, but believe there's room for growth. The final weekend of March, No Depression and the Tractor will host two nights with Olds 97, the Picketts, Whiskeytown and Hazeldine. It's part of a national tour.

"We wouldn't have started it if we didn't think we could turn this into a successful business venture as well," Blackstock concluded. "And it's starting to become that."