STOMPIN’. Them Coulee Boys, a four-piece folk-bluegrass group from western
Wisconsin, brought its energetic live show to the Stone’s Throw Oct. 18. Their
debut album is called I Never Lied About Being in Love.

I love a good summer camp movie. You got Heavyweights, you got Wet Hot American Summer … they’re all great! (OK, they’re not all great.) They’re all just about a bunch of casual friends whose short, limited time together creates a very rushed meaningful experience.

The same can be said for Them Coulee Boys, a folk/bluegrass/pop/punk quartet from the coulee region in Western Wisconsin. Like all good coming-together-at-summer-camp stories, lead songwriter Soren Staff and Beau Janke came together at summer camp working as counselors at Luther Park Bible Camp in Chetek in 2011.

“After the kids left, we would unwind in our cabin by playing together, bonding over our love for classic rock and, of all things, Kanye (West),” Staff said. “We would jam to kind of release all the stress we accrued over the week.”

Thus, Them Coulee Boys was born – and in an apt location, at that. A little banjo twang, a little moonlight, a couple of new members – Soren’s brother Jens Staff on mandolin and Michael Aschbacher on bass – and soon the Boys had a seven-track demo under their belts and starting playing all over the state of Wisconsin.

A perfected and upbeat live show racked up a few fans, and as the Boys’ notoriety started to blossom, the itch to record a proper debut did as well. So the foursome retired to a farmhouse back at Luther Park and using both do-it-yourself technology and professional technique, recorded I Never Lied About Being In Love while continuing to hit up open mics in Eau Claire and in Tomahawk, keeping their energetic live show polished.

“We tend to jump around, dance, scream, really whatever the mood calls for,” Staff said. “Playing live is truly the way we want our music to be enjoyed, because it’s the medium in which we enjoy it the most. We like to keep one another on our toes, be it by strumming your neighbor’s instrument, joining them on their mic, or adding jam sections into a song. We never want it to get stale, so we try to change things up.  You’ll have a good time.”

I Never Lied houses a whopping 14 tracks that flip between sweet folk ballads and raucous bluegrass blowouts with wholly conversational, simple lyrics about love and politics that find Staff and the Boys making sure you hear exactly what they’re saying and feeling, whether you like it or not. And if you crave more, Staff said they’ve got some new stuff they’ve been playing live – to the tune of about 10 new songs. They’re prolific, caring, and a fiercely good time on stage and off.

“To be honest, we are just four best friends who are tickled pink that people will actually pay to have us play somewhere,” Staff said. “We would be happy enough playing in our basements, but to be given the opportunity to play these songs which mean so much to us, for all kinds of people, really means the world to us. We couldn’t be more appreciative of the people who come to shows and dance along. To know that we can make someone feel that, regardless how brief or intense, we know that we’ve done our job.”

To learn more about Them Coulee Boys and their brand new album I Never Lied About Being In Love, find them on Facebook, visit themcouleeboys.com, or see their signature live show on Halloween night at the Acoustic Café in Menomonie.