Ward—a self-taught guitarist—first gained notoriety as a member of the 90s post-punk, hardcore innovators At the Drive-In, a group that was 100% El Paso in its membership and unique genre-bending sound. Ward then went on to found Sparta, a solid rock outfit that reached out to innumerable new fans through three successful albums and global tours.
Somewhere in between all of this action (including appearances on the likes of “Later with Jools Holland”, “Late Night with Conan O'Brien” and “The Late Show With David Letterman”), Ward and his ATDI/Sparta bandmate Paul Hinojos co-founded the record label Restart to provide an outlet for other El Paso musicians. Along with Sparta’s debut EP Austere, Restart released albums by Universal Recovered, Airplanes Are Better, Siva and others. In 2006, Ward collaborated with Cinco Puntos Press founder and noted poet Bobby Byrd for How Will We Know When We’re Dead, which featured original compositions performed by Ward with recordings of Byrd reciting his poetry. The album was released on another label Ward created, Civil Defense League.
So when you’ve had the chance to live and work anywhere in the world, what’s the deal with always coming back this place? Ward says, “There is a thing about being from El Paso and I don’t know if it’s tangible. A lot of people say that El Paso is so uncool it’s cool or it’s so outside the box it’s not pasteurized or homogenized. I think to grow up here and make music here is just unique. I’m sure that happens in a lot of places, but I think that this is one of the cities that truly does that. The fact that there isn’t an El Paso sound is what makes it cool. Even though the world’s getting smaller and smaller, there’s still an isolation factor—there aren’t a thousand musicians here making music, but even if there are, you don’t really feel that.”
As another nod to the idiosyncratic nature of El Paso, Ward launched alt-country outfit Sleepercar in 2008 with the album West Texas. The band’s sound is light years away from ATDI and Sparta, proving the expanse of Ward’s talents as well as the breadth of inspiration he gets from El Paso’s multiculturalism. And once again he has surrounded himself with talented El Paso musicians to round the band out, some of whom are expected to share the stage along with Ward at the Plaza this weekend.
Ward released his first EP, Quiet, just prior to coming out with Sleepercar and it’s easy to hear how one led into the other when listening to each record. The latest EP is entitled In the Valley, On the Shores and it will be interesting to hear how Ward has tapped into music to express the unique way of life he honors about El Paso and wants the rest of the world to appreciate. The EP’s release date of May 1 coincides with the opening of Ward’s new online store, Tembloroso.com, a site that serves as a hub for El Paso-centric musicians and artists. As an added bonus, In the Valley, On the Shores is being made available for a “you name it” price only at Tembloroso.com for the month of May. “From start to finish on this record I’ve had the privilege of having full artistic control over this project,” Ward explains. “So now, I’d like to extend that freedom to my fans.”
Tickets for the May 1 & 2 shows can be purchased at all Ticketmaster locations, the Plaza Theatre box office (915-231-1100), www.ticketmaster.com or by calling 800-745-3000. Reserved seats are $15 plus service charges and the shows begin at 8:00 pm with pre-show cocktails available starting at 5:30 pm each night.
More Information: Click here to learn more about Sleepercar
