GAMBIT WEEKLY - 12.03
Jezebel , the new CD from local fave Beatin Path, jumps out of the speakers with a good-natured sound. The band consists of seasoned pros such as guitarist-singer Skeeter Hanks, drummer Mike Barras and bassist Craig Legendre as well as two members who are better known for their production and engineering skill: Mike Mayeux and Brent Moreland. Together, they make this set of music sound like radio-friendly late-70s/early-80s rock 'n' roll with a slight country twang.

Most of the songs concern the enigma known as woman. Songwriters Mayeux and Hanks focus on the varying aspects of the female gender including yearning for them, the troubles they suffer, and why they are the way they are. The songs vary from the confident swagger of "Darker Days" and "See it in Your Eyes" to the back-porch vibe of "You Don't Know Me" and the bare-bones sound of the title track. The voices of singers Hanks and Mayeux mesh well in their harmonies throughout the entire CD. Moreland's solos are excellent especially his lead and pedal steel work on "Movin to the Country."
Jezebel occasionally veers into strange territory with the spacey vibe and flat vocals of "I Believe" sounding like mid-70s David Bowie or even Steely Dan. However, that doesn't take away from the wailing crunch of "Out of Hand" or the many songs here that are catchy enough to sing along to. It is the harmonies and songwriting that make this CD stand out for all the right reasons. -- Kunian

OFFBEAT - 9.03
Here’s a true story: Skeet Hanks and Mike Mayeux from Beatinpath gave me early versions of the tracks from this disc because they had too many songs and wanted input on which to cut. I suggested “Jezebel” among others not because it’s a bad song-it isn’t-but because its Sugar Ray/”Sweet Jane”-lite nature seemed at odds the with good, Jayhawks-like material. As the title suggests, they didn’t listen to me and went so far as to name the album for the song that doesn’t belong.
Fortunately, the songs on Jezebel are pretty solid, and I’d have to be a petty man to have much negative to say. They might not all hold together as a package-Mayeux’s songs tend to have a more laidback feel (though there’s nothing laidback about his “Twistin’,” which sounds like the Kinks in the ‘80s) than Hanks’ more assertive style. Eight listens out of ten though, the back ‘n’ forth between their songs works well enough.
The clear winners here are, oddly, the loudest and quietest moments. “Twistin’,” the Stones-ish groove of “See It in Your Eyes,” and “Out of Hand” are big rock, with crunching power chords and, importantly, melodies that make the riffs into songs you come back to. Those big rock moments are balanced by quieter moments. Tracks like “You Don’t Know Me” and “Wayside” don’t quite sound offhanded-there’s too much deliberate craft for moments to sound tossed off-but the lighter touch sounds emotionally more accurate at times. -Alex Rawls

LOUISIANA JUKEBOX - 4.03
BEATIN, NOT STIRRED… Grunge without the garage, gospel without the church, pop without the past 10 years. That’s the clever way beatinpath’s bio describes them – and it’s a pretty accurate explanation of this alt-country band. When asked about their unusual name, co-lead singer/songwriter Skeet Hanks explains, “We wanted to position ourselves next to The Beatles in record bins. We originally were ‘Beaten Path’ but then we decided to change ‘Beaten’ to ‘beatin’ and put the two names together. It makes it more active than passive – and that’s us.” Comprised of some of the city’s most respected and in-demand players. (Skeet, Mike Mayeux, Mike Barras, Craig Legendre and Brent Moreland), beatinpath is a true “band’s band”. Ironically their individual music achievements in other groups have made it difficult for beatinpath to find its deserved success. “We got together in ’95 and put out our first cd in ’96,” says Skeet. “However, everyone was so busy with other projects, we kind of went on hiatus for awhile. But when we would get together we’d have this great camaraderie – and all these other musicians would say ‘if you guys would just take this seriously, you’d really have something.’ So we’re renewing our focus on the band. We’re releasing a new album in July and people will be able to catch us around town in August.” Asked what will people remember about a beatinpath show, Skeet jokingly points out the visual 7” height difference between he and fellow singer Mayeux. But then he becomes sincere about his music and the intricate harmonies he and Mayeux construct together. “I really want people to leave singing one of our songs,” Skeet says, “I want them to have that song stuck in their head for days. Then they can go buy our cd!” Check out beatinpath when they perform on Jukebox July 11th and on their website at www.beatinpath.com.

SOME GUY IN A BAR IN JACKSON MS - 3.04
“You boys rock. Can I get a free cd?”