Local band expands scope

Headley Grange made the jump from performing cover songs to writing their own music two years ago. With one CD done and another in progress, the band is taking to the road and growing its fan base with every stop.

Originally known as Midnight Heroez, the Cape Girardeau-based band is made up of Lamar Holdiness on vocals and guitar, Kenny Fisher on bass, Derrick Shipp on guitar and Scot Kluesner on drums.

"We all came from different musical backgrounds and had originally been in different bands," Kluesner said. "We had a few different projects that we did together that included a metal band, an acoustic project and the bar scene, which was Midnight Heroez."

Playing in Headley Grange is the members' passion, but it is not yet able to support them completely. Holdiness, the lead singer, is a carpenter, Kluesner is an electrician, Shipp works at National Asset Recovery Services in Cape Girardeau and Fisher works at New Waves Communications in Sikeston. They are working toward making the band their full-time job.

"We all have day jobs, but getting our band to its full potential is our No. 1 priority," Holdiness said.

The band's first album was titled Trumble Hill and included 10 songs. They have close to seven new songs written as of right now and are preparing to go back into the studio soon. The release of their second album is scheduled for the winter of 2012.

Headley Grange has played shows at several Cape Girardeau venues, including Pitters Café and Lounge, Rude Dog Pub and Buckner Brewing Co. The band has also traveled to other cities such as Nashville and Chicago.

"It is a lot of fun going out of town for shows," Kluesner said. "We get to play in places we haven't been to, and we get to meet new people."

The band travels in a 15-passenger van that the members sometimes sleep in if they don't know anyone in town who they can stay with.

"We are used to living out of a van and being broke, so that is why we do a lot of home shows to raise money for traveling," Holdiness said. "By the time we get back from traveling our van reeks of old bags of fast food and feet."

Headley Grange considers itself to be a bluesy southern rock group, but uses a variety of different sounds to satisfy various musical tastes.

"We know that our audience has different tastes in music, and so while we may have a specific genre, that is not all they will hear from us when they hear us play live," Kluesner said. "That is something we enjoy doing."

Being able to travel and share their music in other cities has been an accomplishment in itself, and recently they got even more good news.

"We got a booking agent now, which is very exciting and helpful with our touring aspect," Holdiness said. "And we just recently got accepted into the Missouri Blues Association."

When it comes to playing live, the band members like to show the crowd a good time. They love every moment of performing and really show their fans that they are just guys who love doing what they do.

"We really put a lot into our shows, and we just hope our fans get the energy and seriousness that we put in from watching us," Holdiness said.

To listen to the band's music and to get a touring schedule, visit its Facebook page at facebook.com/pages/Headley-Grange.