Within a
year, all that changed. Another local band was splitting up which featured
a very young but talented female lead singer named Lizz K. On a hunch,
the guys in Bucksweetie called Lizz up to sit in at one of their rehearsals.
The results were far beyond anyone’s expectations. As Mike Higgins said,
“I knew the minute she started singing, there was something magical
going on”. Later that year, the band released the CD “Carved in Stone”
independently. The local rock radio stations couldn’t play it enough,
and the band was finding itself in the position of getting so many offers
to play that they were having to turn down bookings. This is definitely
something they never had to contend with before. In the meantime, Dave
and Lizz got married, and a wonderful time was had by all. Right, Lizz?
Within a few years, and realizing they had to channel their newfound
success into something bigger, the band decided on a name-change. Why
Little Bo & the Peep Show? For one thing, nobody else had used it!
Also, a new urge to write and record a new CD was at hand, given their
growth as musicians together and the desire to step out on a bigger
stage. Little Bo combined with longtime friend and producer Kevin Chalfant
(707, the Storm) to record what would be their debut under the new moniker.
Enlisting the help of recording engineer George Tutko (Rod Stewart,
John Mellencamp), sound engineer/musician Rick Powell, and mastering
engineer John Chorak, the band started a challenging, emotional and
ultimately satisfying recording effort.
The new CD has been very well received, earning airplay on WLRZ (La
Salle/Peru), Rock 106 (Peoria) and other radio outlets, while selling
briskly at Northern and Central Illinois record stores and making great
frisbees for young toddlers who snuck the CD out of mom’s entertainment
center.
The Music...
Little Bo & the Peep Show’s self-titled debut on Clique Records
is a melodic yet hard-edged collection of eclectic songs, ranging from
the happy alt-pop of Little Bit of Something to the Zeppelin-esque Sneakin’
Through the Back Door, peppered with the moody Since Love Died and the
dreamy dance-pop Give Me a Lotta Lovin’. There’s even a detour into
gin-swilling back-porch country with the bonus track Rocking Chair…but
don’t EVEN get the idea that this is a disjointed hodge-podge collection
of muck-ola. The thread that runs through all of it is Lizz Neal’s dynamic
and extremely interpretive voice (did I say EXTREMELY???). Lizz has
a raspy soprano voice that is somewhere between Melissa Etheridge and
Janis Joplin, but she can be really smooth and silky as well as jackhammer-nasty,
and the emotion she expresses is rarely heard, even at the mega-platinum
level of the music biz.
The other band members are major players in the Little Bo CD sound,
too. The Brothers Higgins pound their unique rhythm section style (caused
in no small way by being carpenters by day and, well, the Brothers Higgins
at night). Dave pepper-sprays the sonic landscape with bullets from
his Fender-style guitars, then soothes the wound with chords too pretty
to drink beer to. Rick smiles and plays everything else. And Kevin ties
the whole thing into something you can sing to (on EVERY song!) How
many recordings can you do that to these days?
Little Bo
& the Peep Show rose out of the ashes of the former Bucksweetie,
one of the most popular rock bands in Central and Northern Illinois.
Formed in 1995 by original members Tim and Mike Higgins (drums and bass),
Dave Neal (guitar) and Mike Vermeland (keyboards/guitar), who was later
replaced by Rick Powell, the band played local venues and developed
a strong following among the locals. Their ability to nail cheesy 70’s
songs by artists as diverse as Elton John, the Eagles, Kiss and Ozzy
was legendary in the area. However, that certain “something” was missing
that would propel the band to the next level of success. 