Mark my words, Westerners will be one of the hottest bands around this area in 2015.

This is a band that has done well more than put in their time, and they’ve done it with an ever-changing landscape in the scene. We’ve seen Westerners headline shows, we’ve seen them open shows. We’ve seen them with a large and excitable audience, we’ve seen them play to no one. But the one remaining constant at their shows is that they give 110%.

One venue they tend to frequent is the Jackpot, which is great because you get some of the best sound in town at the Jackpot (the owners have been constantly working to make the sound and stage friendly for local bands with expensive updates). With the fantastic frequency they get from the venue, they band takes full advantage of that spacious stage. Often, they’ll scoot and shimmy across the floor and rock out to their heart’s content.

On Saturday night, they debuted new music at their Jackpot show. We’re expecting even more new songs from the band, since they just announced signing with The Record Machine in Kansas City. They’ve got a lot of work (and out-of-town gigs) on their plate for 2015, but we know they’ll remain a familiar face around here. The members of Westerners have constantly been showing up to support other bands at their shows. This is A MUST for any local band. The ones that tend to do the best are the ones who actually get off their butts and go see local music (and not just their friends’ bands either). When we saw them popping up at every venue in town to watch (and support) local music, this was the very first clue that Westerners were going to be great.

Here’s a favorite song they tend to open up with at their shows:

Words and photos by Fally Afani