Over at the local hip blog, they are very excited about this Friday’s show at Dave’s Aqua Lounge featuring the Pine Box Boys, but that just shows the power we Arkansans have over the rest of you. How else to explain the likes of Bill and Hillary (although, actually, she’s a Yankee) or Jerry Jones or Scott Joplin or Maya Angelou (that’s right, she’s from Stamps) or John Grisham or Billy Bob Thornton? And you can’t even imagine the Southern-fried, Arkansan voodoo it took to get North Little Rock’s Joey Lauren Adams on big screens around the world.

Oh, yes, I know and understand my fellow Arkansans in exile, many of whom have lost their accents, just like me, until we call home or talk to fellow Southerners or drink too much beer or eat barbecue. (Oh and here’s a hint folks: all we Arkansans are in exile, because while Little Rock is vastly underrated and the food and the local music scene there are good, there’s more money to be made in places like Washington D.C., Dallas, Los Angeles and Tampa. And, just like you, we likes us some money). And I have nothing but pride for fellow exile Lester T. Raww, who has come up with the sort of band that shocks all those tofu eaters out west. Basing themselves out of the San Francisco bay area, Pine Box Boys write hilarious, bluegrass-tinged songs about murder, mystery and mayhem, often involving knives. I bet Rob Zombie loves this band.

Hell, down in El Dorado or up in Ft. Smith we’d just think it was a laugh and go back to worryin’ about what the hell happened to the Cowboys in the playoffs or what the Hogs are going to do without Darren McFadden. But the Pine Box Boys have found a way to make this act (called Horrorbilly) into a way to make a living, and for that, they have my respect. Plus, did I mention they are actually pretty good? If you miss the show Friday, you can also see them Monday at Kelly’s Pub in downtown Tampa.

By the way, Sticks of Fire is one of the more lively things happening locally on the Internet, you should give it a look (that’s if you didn’t already by following the link I provided above).