The Rhine’s Own Cowboys - The Boss Hoss

By Bennett Owen

Credit: tonspionRhine as in Rhine River. These cowboys from Berlin are hugely popular in Germany, and are selling out concerts through much of Central Europe and Britain with their blend of country, rockabilly boogie and plain old good time rock and roll. OK, some sex appeal doesn’t hurt either. Oh right. And talent. As Sharon Stone once said, ‘you can only sleep your way to the middle.’

Credit: WhiteTrashFastFoodBoss Hoss’ 2005 debut was titled, ‘InterNashville Urban Hymns’, described as an effort to put a country spin on some of their all-time favorite songs and introduce them to a new generation of hip youngsters in the party capital of the world.  The seven man group has been steadily gaining popularity ever since.

Credit: semajblogeaterThey took a one and a half year hiatus and traveled to Texas to gather inspiration for their latest effort, ‘Liberty of Action.’  A tribute, they say, to the love of freedom. Along the way, they realized a lifelong dream, playing venues across the Lone Star State, including the landmark Continental Club in Austin. This video was filmed in Austin and it is infectious:

The BossHoss -- Don't Gimme That - MyVideo

The Houston Press described one of their concerts thusly: “We weren’t really sure whether we had witnessed…some kind of brutally ironic Berlin-intellectual post-industrialist art statement that we are too hick to understand. What we did know was that The Boss Hoss delivered the fun.”  Indeed. 

Boss Hoss Frontmen Sascha Vollmer and Alec Völkel are dedicated Elvis and Johnny Cash fans. “Elvis is ageless,” Vollmer says. “He was sexy, good looking, and even in his dotage had a voice like a young god. His music was a revolution.”  High praise from the Berlin hipsters.

Credit: WikipediaIn their new CD, The Boys have teamed up with Nena, of 99 Red Balloons fame for a cover of Nat King Cole’s evergreen, L.O.V.E.  OK, I sense some tongue in cheek on this one but I had the hots for Nena in the early 80s and it appears she has only gotten better with age.