The Boro Bar and Grill will host its Second Annual Freedom Bash. This year’s Friday, July 4, concert features a great group of Murfreesboro rockers.

Usually, Ghostfinger is the name taken by a trio of men who know their way around an instrument or five, with Kirkpatrick, keyboardist Matt Rowland and drummer Van Campbell. But limitations suck, and these gentlemen perform with unbridled bravado, swinging through sets of extraordinarily composed pop-rock songs.

It’s two parts Wild West adventure, one part Rolling Stones, with generous dollops of talent, quirkiness, gusto and interstellar whistling.

In 2005 they recorded “These Colors Run,” met with critical acclaim just about everywhere. The album, mastered at Nashville’s hallowed Georgetown Masters, managed to capture the group’s intensity and range, and the effect is effortless brilliance.

In 2006 Kirkpatrick was voted Best Frontman in Nashville, thanks mostly to his propensity to dance with his fans, the palpable energy Ghostfinger brings at every single show and his handlebar mustachio.

In 2007, the band released a 7-inch vinyl taster called “Born On The Moon.” It was a perfect follow-up, a set of songs that were definitely still Ghostfinger, but different enough to distance themselves from “These Colors Run.” The space odyssey had begun.

When they’re not being Ghostfingers, band members find other ways to amuse themselves. Kirkpatrick has been touring with David Vandevelde and Grammy-nominated musician Bobby Bare Jr, a member of the Young Criminals Starvation League. Campbell has also been busy, touring with The Black Diamond Heavies in Europe, where they’re a pretty big thing.

On July 4 watch out for lanky frontman Kirkpatrick’s fan-friendly hijinks, and be prepared to close your eyes and remember why you liked music in the first place. ? Valerie Nutt

The Incredible Heat Machine

The Incredible Heat Machine is a prog-rock jam band grown right here in Murfreesboro. The band cites a diverse mix of artists as influences, such as Pink Floyd, Rush, Blind Melon, Modest Mouse and moe. Their music is progressive, rooted in jam band tradition, but also shows a touch of reggae, electronic and alternative sound. No matter what genre they’re channeling, their music is meant to make you move.

“Our sound is the result of five guys with very diverse musical backgrounds coming together to make something original and appealing,” the band’s guitarist John Turner said. “It’s somewhere between progressive and psychedelic, but at the core we’re a rock band.”

The band features Turner on guitar, Rob Knug on keys, Keegan Pavlovic on bass, Jeremy Pinell on guitar and vocals, and Ray Dunham on drums and vocals.

After coming together in January 2005, the band released their debut, self-titled album in 2006. They are currently working on a new album while playing shows throughout Tennessee and the rest of the Southeast, and are happy to be returning to the Freedom Bash.

“We’re very excited to be playing the Freedom Bash again this year,” said Turner. “We all had such a good time last year and we feel honored to be included on the lineup again. There is such a great sense of community among the bands in Murfreesboro these days, and we jump at any opportunity to share the stage with our friends.

“We’re all especially pumped about watching Jesus from The Last Straw lay down some tasty slide licks. If those guys were to have action figures made, Kyle Daniel’s might be the top seller, but we’d take Jesus any day.”

? Jamie Lovett

THB

Simultaneously whimsical and down-to-earth, The Homegrown Band pays homage to their hometown connection when they perform at Murfreesboro’s Freedom Bash.

The band, known as THB, can trace their family vibe back to their childhoods, where Lenny Cramer, along with brother, Mike, and their childhood friend Glenn Rohrbach began playing together 10 years ago.

Currently, the band plans to release two upcoming albums, one of which is a studio album, and the other is a live performance recorded at Murfreesboro’s Walnut House. With Middle Tennessee as a base, the band has performances scheduled across the South and Midwest through the end of 2008. However, THB is not hesitant to branch out.

“We tour, and we performed in Amsterdam last year at the 20th Cannabis Cup festival,” Cramer said. “We performed with Tommy Chong and Redman, and right now we’re trying to promote ourselves through that.”

Despite the “homegrown” motif, and the band member’s rural upbringings on a community known as “The Farm,” their self-described “airtight drums and bass” are the farthest thing from country. That country tie will be severed further with the band’s plan to relocate to California next summer, which aligns nicely with the lighthearted, beach-friendly tone in many of their songs.

“Our music comes from our own experiences,” Lenny said. “Or at least experiences that could happen to us, or could happen to anybody. It makes us relatable.”

With relevant, everyday song titles and topics like “Cheesecake” and “TVs and Magazines,” the jaunty sounds of THB are at once laid back and energizing, which is a difficult energy to maintain. ? Ashlea Ramey

Hammertorch

Twangy, imaginative melodies from local band Hammertorch will add some creative flair to this year’s Freedom Bash.

The band consists of drummer Tyler Coppage, guitarist Steve Daly, bassist Jared Forrester, keyboardist Jason Harding and guitarist Jason Yeary, as well as Forrester, Harding and Yeary’s vocals.

That instrumentation, in conjunction with the heavy country and rock influences of Nashville, yields a “really aggressive country rock,” Yeary explained. “We’re trying to take country and apply it to other forms of music.”

Additionally, Hammertorch is trying to break free of conventional musical arrangements. “We’re doing a lot of time signature changes and things that not many alternative country bands do,” Yeary explained.

The resulting sound, which the band’s MySpace page describes as “an artistic retreat from industrial giants,” utilizes pulsating beats that prevent their songs from backsliding into stereotyped, mournful country tunes. Nevertheless, song titles like “Murfreesboro Motel” still prominently proclaim the mark of the region, as well as country’s bluesy, wistful lyrics. In order to transcend genre ideals, all of their songs showcase the technical skill of experienced musicians.

“Three of us have played in a band together before,” Yeary explained. “Hammertorch has been together for about a year and half, and we all play in at least one other band as well.”

Their current projects include recent touring endeavors, as well as their first studio album, which Yeary hopes will be the “greatest CD that’s been made in the history of music.”

Future plans for Hammertorch remain in the air, but they will continue to struggle to break into the competitive world of Nashville music. However, Yeary remains realistic.

“I don’t think any of us think we’re going to really make it big,” Yeary admitted. “But we’re making some cool stuff, and who knows?” ? Ashlea Ramey

The Last Straw

The Last Straw is an explosion of Southern roots, combining blues, folk, funk, soul and rock ?n’ roll to create a sound that guitarist and vocalist Kyle Daniel describes as “Southern-fried rock ?n’ soul.”

The five-piece band consists of two Murfreesboro natives, bassist Marc Williams and drummer Jason “Kidd” Petersen, as well as Daniel and keyboardist Adam Botner, both from Kentucky, and slide guitarist and harp player Quincey Meeks of Alabama.

The band first formed in February 2007. In 2008 they played at the 102.9 The Buzz Buzzie awards celebration. Daniel and Meeks took home the award for “Best Guitarists,” and Botner won for “Best Auxiliary Instrumentalist.”

The band keeps a busy schedule, touring the Southeast while working on their first release.

“We’re gearing up for our debut album that will come out this fall,” said Daniel. “It’s going to be called Drawin’ Straws. We’ve got that and we’ve been doing some Southeast tours, places like Jonesboro, and heading to Memphis, and some gigs in Alabama and Florida, and in Tennessee, trying to reach out to the Southeast area and hit it hard, and start a buzz.”

Despite the busy schedule, Daniel said they’re still ready to return to the Freedom Bash.

“We’re excited. We’re really amped up about it. It was a great success for us last year. It was the turning point for us as a band, especially in Murfreesboro. It kind of jump started what we were doing and got us exposed to some people. This year should be phenomenal .” ? Jamie Lovett

Boo Boo Bunny

Murfreesboro’s ultimate shock rock outfit, Boo Boo Bunny, will be gracing the stage at this year’s annual Pulse Freedom Bash. If you’re new to the ?Boro and haven’t had the pleasure of seeing our town’s most offensive band, brace yourself for vulgarity, hilarity and at least a few Catholic school girls.

A lot of people love to hate Boo Boo Bunny, and a lot of people love to love them. They’ve survived in a sometimes hostile environment for the past 12 years, in part, due to the tenacity of front man Craig Murphy.

The sometimes bald, sometimes bearded and always crass Murphy precedes even Boo Boo Bunny on the ?Boro scene. He will celebrate 20 years of performing in Murfreesboro at the Freedom Bash.

That’s quite a feat in a town where your base audience rotates every four years. In fact, rotation seems to be a recurring theme in Boo Boo Bunny. It started after their first show, when original bassist Donnie Floyd was given the boot three minutes after their first show at The Boro.

“And so began the landslide of personnel changes that would become a trademark of the band,” Murphy said. The band has changed lineup 36 times in the past 12 years. Sometimes members leave then come back, sometimes they go for good.

In 1988, Murphy played in The Whining Art Fags, an idea that eventually became Boo Boo Bunny in 1996.

I guess the name was a bigger hit with the kids. But this is no arts and crafts project for the little ones, Boo Boo Bunny sets are definitely for grownups, preferably with slightly perverted attitudes. Recurrent themes include boobs and some less than savory sexual acts, which Murphy growls about, backed by a high energy rock/metal sound.

Join the raucous foursome and the Pulse on July 4 to celebrate what makes our country, and Boo Boo Bunny, great: freedom of speech. ?Valerie Nutt

2008 Freedom Bash Schedule:

Boo Boo Bunny @ 12:00