The Red and Black

(Kat Wong - The Red & Black) DRIVE BY TRUCKERS When: 9 tonight, Friday and Saturday Where: 40 Watt Club Price: $15 advance tickets at Schoolkids Records and Low Yo Yo Stuff [Click to enlarge]

For the Drive By Truckers frontman, home is where friends are.

"We get to play for a bunch of our friends here," lead vocalist Patterson Hood said. "But that can also be kind of unnerving at times too. When you play for your friends ... they expect the best out of you."

Hood said he has lived in Athens for 12 years.

"Lots of bands, once they get out ... never come back home to play. I don't ever want us to be that way," Hood said of the band that will kick off its three-night stint in the Classic City tonight at 40 Watt Club. "I love Athens - it fits me."

The band has played all over the United States, Europe, the Netherlands and with some of the biggest names in rock 'n' roll.

Tonight's show will feature songs from Drive By Truckers' new album, "A Blessing and a Curse," Hood said.

"A Blessing and a Curse" is "more concise and immediate than the last album," he said of "The Dirty South," which was released in 2004.

Recorded in August in Kernersville, N.C., "A Blessing and a Curse" is a compilation of modern mythology.

"It still has our same sound but is a little bit different," Hood said.

The album is scheduled for release first in Europe in March and then in the United States in April.

The band only has 10 shows in the country from January until its U.S. release date. After that, Hood predicted a total of 150 shows for the year.

Carl Liebig, a graduate student from San Diego, Calif., was turned on to the band by a friend.

"They're one of my favorite Athens bands right now," Liebig said. "Them and drivin' n' cryin'."

Liebig has more than four Drive By Truckers albums on his computer.

"I've never been to any of their shows before, but I got to see Patterson Hood solo at the Caledonia Lounge a few months ago," he said of the Drive By Truckers lead vocalist who often performs solo in town at various small venues. "It was pretty cool. The concert was done outside, so the atmosphere was real laid-back and mellow."

Liebig said although Hood's solo performance was relaxed, he knows Drive By Truckers can get downright rowdy.

The band is known for its high energy on stage and involvement with the crowd.

"The band plays off of the audience," Hood said. "If they're wild and crazy, we're wild and crazy. My favorite shows are always the ones with the most band/crowd interaction."

Schoolkids Records employees Christian Greenwood and Karen Freed said they aren't fans of Drive By Truckers or the southern rock genre, but they appreciate the customers the band attracts.

Greenwood said the band always does well in ticket sales and predicted the newest album will be a monetary success for the band.

"Every time they put out a new album, it just flies off the shelf," Greenwood said.

Maybe this success will find its way to the bands that will open for Drive By Truckers.

"Athens bands, lots of times, are a lot better than some of the more well-known bands we've played at shows with," Hood said. "Some of these other bands play real sloppy when they've got 50,000 fans screaming in the audience. I think a lot of bands here will really take off after a little more exposure."

Opening for Drive By Truckers are The Whigs (Thursday), Producto (Friday) and The Dexateens (Saturday).

"It seems like only a matter of time before The Whigs get the bigger, better recognition they deserve," Hood said. "They made that first album on their own and already have a lot of buzz off of that."

The members of Drive By Truckers like to help out fellow musicians, said Hood, who is helping produce The Dexateens' album.

"Anytime that we can bring a local band on tour with us we do it," Hood said. "The more exposure they get, the better it is for them."

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