Thomas Function

Huntsville, AL-based band the Thomas Function play sloppy, joyful, organ-laden garage rock featuring Joshua Macero's occasionally whiney but always charismatic vocals. The band evolved from Macero's four-track bedroom tapes, around which he built the band in 2001, including Zach Jeffries (who provides the all-important Farfisa beat) and drummer Phillip Dougherty. Travis Thompson — an old cohort of Macero's from their days in punk band the Panic Buttons, was added on bass, and the Thomas Function began gigging around Huntsville and eventually the country. The band's 2008 debut, Celebration, on Alive Records (a Bomp! imprint), bolstered by some classic 7" singles and key appearances at festivals like SXSW, garnered enthusiastic critical response, and attracted the same listeners who were clamoring for the simple, unschooled three-chordisms of Jay Reatard and King Khan. They also toured overseas in support of their album and met with wildly enthusiastic European audiences. In the fall of 2009 the band released the solid follow-up In the Valley of Sickness on Fat Possum and toured the country.