In 1998, Jamie Barrier and a few friends strode into the Pine Hill Cemetery on Armstrong Street with instruments in hand.
When they emerged a few hours later, they had created what would come to be described as "ghost country." This was the first official band practice of The Pine Hill Haints.
Jeremy Henderson of TheWarEagleReader.com, who was the band's official drummer from 2002-03, elaborated on what exactly "ghost country" is.
"It's meant as more of an attitude than a sound, the idea being that they're channeling the sound and spirit of a pre-strip mall South or something," Henderson said. "But of course, you call them a jug band, but there's no jug. It's not really bluegrass. Not really folk, at least the folk people probably think of when they think of folk. Not technically rockabilly. So stylistically speaking, I guess 'ghost country' works as a descriptor as well as anything."
Jamie, who has lead guitar and vocal duties, cites such influences as Howlin' Wolf, Buddy Holly and Johnny Cash.
He and his friends, who lived in an old house together on Burton Street, had a few more practices, fine tuning their sound and writing songs. They started getting gigs and opening for more popular bands.
Before long, the band made the transition to headlining at bars and more popular venues.
"Things really kind of took off for them in town around 2000," Henderson said. "I'm pretty sure Jamie credits that to 'O Brother Where Art Thou.'"
Things have progressed even more for the band since the early 2000s. Shortly after graduating, the Haints relocated to north Alabama. Apart from playing shows and going on tour, they spent some time recording albums as well.
2011 marked the release of the Haints' latest album, "Welcome to the Midnight Opry." It is their third album released with K Records.
"We've been traveling all over the South the past few months playing shows," Jamie said. "A lot in north Alabama, but we actually just got back from traveling overseas."
Now, they are coming back to the area where it all started. Friday, Nov. 2, the Haints will be gracing the Standard Deluxe stage in Waverly with their ghost style.
Along with Jamie, expect to see wife, Kat, on washboard or mandolin, Matt Bakula on washtub bass, Ben Rhyne on snare, Joey Barrier on banjo and Jon Lucas on accordion. They have been known to use less conventional instruments, such as garbage cans or pickle buckets from Subway.
This will be the band's first time playing at the outdoor venue, and the members said they are looking forward to being back in the Auburn area. It was at Auburn that Jamie met Kat; he also recalls the influence the tight-knit community had on the band in its first years.
"When you're in Auburn, after one night, you're friends with people for life," Jamie said. "Everyone's real romantic. Where I am now, you gotta know someone for 20 years before they're cool with you."
Perhaps after their one night in Waverly next month, Jamie and the gang will have a few more friends and a few more fans.
"Every show is different" Jamie said. "We never play the same set. It'll be fun. Our songs typically aren't too deep or moody. It's more carefree stuff, like a guy saying 'hey, I think you're pretty, and I want to hold your hand.'"
It all sounds fitting for a night under the stars and strands of lights on a crisp fall night in Waverly.
"And there's dancing... a lot of dancing," Henderson said.
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