Some may recognize a Tuco as a character in Clint Eastwood’s’ “The Good, the Bad and the Ugly,” but for band mates Jeremy Porter, Jason Bowes and Gabe Doman, it was a quickly-chosen name for their newly-formed band.
Jeremy Porter and The Tucos will be playing at 10 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 27 at the Upfront & Company to promote their single, “Night on the Town,” which was released in June 2011.
“I would probably call our music Americana power pop; it’s upbeat and alternative,” said Porter, lead singer of the Tucos. “Some of it is kind of in the style of power pop bands in the 70s and 80s like Cheap Trick and The Knack. Some of it is a little more country-tinged.”
The Detroit band plays mostly originals songs, including “Galveston” and “Ain’t My House Anymore.”
The band records with Mag Wheel Records out of Toronto.
Although Upfront & Company is a larger venue than the bars and rock clubs the band usually plays at, it is the kind of place that Porter always looks forward to playing at.
“I’ve played there so many times over the years,” Porter said. “It’s the kind of place I look forward to just because they treat bands really well and everyone who works there is really friendly. I’ve known some of the guys who have been there since high school, so it’s kind of fun in that way.”
Jeremy is a former Marquette resident; he attended the local high school and NMU, and in the 80s was part of one of Marquette’s first punk bands, The Regulars.
Although Porter moved to the Detroit area in 1988, no matter what band he was a part of, he always made sure to come up and play in Marquette.
“It is one of my favorite places to go, and not only to play with the band,” Porter said. “My wife and I vacation up there, and we come up and do the bike race every summer. Marquette is probably my favorite place.”
Over the years, Porter has been a part of a number of bands including The Comebacks, Slugbug and The OffRamps.
Porter also put out a solo record in 2010 titled “Party of One.”
Later that year, while putting together a song for a Christmas compilation, Porter enlisted the help of a couple of friends. With Bowes on the bass and Doman on the drums, The Tucos were born.
“I enjoyed doing the solo acoustic tour but I was kind of yearning to play with the band again,” Porter said. “I was missing the camaraderie and volume.”
Bowes had been the bass player in The OffRamps, and Doman came from a band called The Hotwalls.
“The Christmas song went really well,” Porter said. “We started learning some other songs and three or four weeks later we played our first show.”
More information about the show can be found at the Upfront & Company’s website, www.upfrontandcompany.com. For more information on The Tucos, visit www.facebook.com/jeremyportermusic or www.jeremyportermusic.com.
