PRINTScouting the scene
Band plans for local roots on national scene
Beth Suda
Corey Schmidt, Sam Hunt, Chase Clettenberg, Chris Thomas and Jawnny Hankley of Scouts pursue their dreams of leaving CoMo and their humble beginnings in the dust
April 23, 2009 | 12:00 a.m. CST
Local indie-rock quintet Scouts is a band best described in numbers. Members with “real” jobs: five. The number wearing skinny jeans: two. With histories as Eagle Scouts: two. Sporting nose rings: one. Members with the will to stay in Columbia: zero.
Like many Midwestern bands, Part I of Scouts’ story began in a college town. Two years ago in Columbia, the original members teamed up to form Scouts Have Left the Reservation but eventually shortened the name to Scouts. Today, the ambitious but charming band is a vital part of a community that it doesn’t really belong to.
Who: Scouts
When: Friday, 8:30 p.m.
Where: Mojo’s
Cost: $10
Call: 875-0588
“I’ve always been under the impression that if I’m going to be in a band, I’m going to tour,” guitarist Sam Hunt says. “I’m going to see the country.”
That brings us to Part II. Scouts appear the perfect portrait of a typical local band until you notice that it’s painted in the bold strokes of larger-than-life ambitions. The band has been waiting for keyboardist/guitarist Chase Clettenberg’s graduation from MU in May to tackle more formidable tours than its jaunt through Texas during spring break. Coupled with the release of the group’s first full-length album in August, the new freedom to migrate should crush the last barrier between Scouts and getting the heck out of Columbia.
“I think because a lot of us are from much bigger cities, we realize that this isn’t the center of the world,” says tight-trousered Clettenberg. “Sometimes people ask me, ‘How’s the scene in Columbia?’ and I’ll say, ‘What scene?’ We have a goal that goes beyond that.”
Some of the members’ favorites, such as The Get Up Kids, hail from Kansas City, which might have an influence on the band’s sound. Although the guys joke that they sound like a mix between Fergie and Jesus, it’s hard to miss the Missouri roots in Scouts’ alternative rock style that shines on smaller stages like Mojo’s as it will Friday. “Scouts is one of the most talented bands I’ve seen in a long time, especially in Columbia,” says Jesse Garcia, manager of Sapphire Lounge. “They brought back to life a scene that was dying. As a venue owner, I give them a year to a year and a half to hit national markets.”
“They’re into the music, not just the idea,” Eagle Scouts guitarist Robert Varner says of Scouts. He has played with the group in previous performances. In offhand conversations, Hunt and Clettenberg operate somewhere beside the point and often get stuck there, but that changes when the focus is the future. For Scouts, Part III is the easy part: After two years spent living and rocking in and out of Columbia, the consensus is that it’s time to move on.
“For us, there are two complete extremes,” Clettenberg says of the band’s career options — put simply, success or failure. “We could leave in August and come back in three weeks — done. Or, I could never have a real job in my life. There’s so much uncertainty between those two.”
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