Tim Radl
The Hussy’s local haunt is often Mickey’s Tavern, but in May the band celebrated its new album release at the High Noon Saloon.
With garage rock ambitions, remarkable chemistry and a dedication to songcraft, Bobby Hussy and Heather Sawyer’s musical partnership has flourished in the seven years since their band was born in an east-side Madison basement.
The bandmates first came together in 2008, when they rehearsed a one-off show as the rhythm section in the short-lived band Kaliko. Performing as the Hussy, they have since established themselves as Midwest ambassadors of rock ’n’ roll, DIY shows and the power of the two-piece band.
“That’s forever,” guitarist and singer Bobby Hussy says in reference to the Hussy’s duo lineup. “Heather’s holding [drums] down extremely well. It’s loud, and in the right setting, it sounds perfect.”
Locally, that setting has often been Mickey’s Tavern, a tiny, stageless bar on Willy Street that Bobby says he’ll look back on in 20 years as the home of some of the Hussy’s best shows. With the crowd pushed right up against the performers, the Hussy’s bare, in-your-face live sets have benefitted from immediate audience connections. And with the Hussy’s blistering songs, Bobby and Heather haven’t had a problem putting on wild shows by themselves.
“If I write a riff, I’m hoping it’s going to cover a lot of ground,” Bobby says. “Every night you’re playing against a band with a bass player, so you have to do something to make it stand out. I’d like to think that both of us write catchy songs, that the melodies have high importance.”
“To me it’s always been melodies first,” Heather adds, noting that both she and Bobby bring fully finished or partially completed songs into rehearsal before hashing them out together.
Using their self-described “trash” aesthetic to thoughtfully adorn concise pop tunes, their collaborations have resulted in major earworms.
“Down That Road,” from their new album Galore, for instance, has Heather reeling “Just go go go go, go-go-go” in a sing-along chorus flanked by fuzzed-out guitars and a romping open hi-hat groove. On the garage anthem “Made in the Shade,” Bobby swaggeringly sings “I don’t care what you say, I’ve got it made in the shade” during a hook that would put Top 40 acts to shame.
Making incredibly poppy music in a genre seemingly destined for the underground, Bobby and Heather are having a great time. “I can’t play music with another person like I play with Heather,” says Bobby. “I don’t have another person who’s that telepathic. We know where the songs are going to go. If we bring a new song in, we practice it two times, hit ‘record,’ and it’s golden. We’re in each other’s headspace.”
With six LPs tracked and 500-plus concerts behind them, the Hussy have started to explore different live arrangements for special shows, bringing in Tyler Fassnacht on guitar for local gigs such as their recent Shitty Barn session and playing as a six-piece for Galore’s release party at High Noon Saloon. They also plan to enlist guest musicians at their next Madison performance, an opening set for Benjamin Booker on Sept. 18 at Live on King Street.
Ultimately, though, the Hussy have built a career on being a no-nonsense group with a two-headed vision. They are Bobby and Heather, and the Hussy is their family: “This is like our dog, cat and child,” says Bobby. “We got all three going in the Hussy. It’s always going to be what I’m in love with.”
