Forming a rock band in a mountain town is every ski bum’s sacred rite. Keeping that band together is another matter entirely.
With the transient nature of a ski community, it can be tricky for folks to commit. “Tahoe Time” prevents otherwise perfectly capable humans from making plans more than a few days, or hours, in advance. And, try getting together for band practice when every member is juggling three jobs to pay the rent.
“The level of playing has really been on a skyrocket to the moon. … Honestly, I’d pit our music scene against any small town of our size in America and I think we’d stack up pretty well.”
–Andy Laughlin
This is what makes The Space Heaters so special — not that there haven’t been some personnel changes along the way. A revolving door of bass players had been the project’s Achilles heel ever since Hudson Klein left for New Zealand. In fact, they rotated through six different players in just as many years until landing Thomas Page.
“I’m blown away playing with Thomas,” says lead singer and saxophonist Andy Laughlin. “He is one of the most skilled bass players in our area. It makes a big difference to have someone who is positive and confident and can roll out the best jokes at any moment. It makes for a great bonding energy at the shows.”
Along with his good ol’ boy Southern charm, the Mississippian Page brings a deep knowledge of back of house and sound engineering from his time in Deep South delta bar bands and the Truckee psychedelic rock group Coburn Station.
“Sometimes it can be hard in a wild rock ‘n’ roll setting,” says Laughlin. “Because he’s such a wizard on the sound board, I can actually hear myself now. We have audience members who’ve been to many of our shows saying, ‘I never heard the lyrics to that particular song and they’re actually pretty funny.’”
Since 2009, The Space Heaters have penned more than 30 original songs with outlandish lyrics to encompass everything from Lord of the Rings LARPing (live action role play) in Wisconsin fields to a man with the uncanny ability to win eating contests throughout New England.
Their musical voyages were once guided by the flamboyant guitar stylings of John Hamilton until four years ago when he relocated to rural Maine with his wife and family leaving a void that was hard to fill.
“John is a legend and I will always be grateful for what he taught me about music,” says Laughlin. “For many years, he was the main attraction.”
Now the group seems to have finally found a fitting replacement to rock alongside longtime rhythm guitarist Trevor Larkins since they found David Faber of popular West Shore acts Chile Verde and Picked Over.
“David’s been another awesome addition to the band,” says Laughlin. “While he brings a different vibe to his playing, he has fully filled John’s shoes in terms of shredding, face-melting guitar. You can see from the looks on the faces in the front two rows that the music is doing what it’s supposed to.”
With Drew Smith reigning supreme on drums, The Space Heaters once again number five and are rolling with a renewed chemistry as proven by a pre-pandemic string of head-turning performances. In 2019, they sold out Moe’s Original BBQ in Tahoe City with a line of people around the block and won the coveted trophy at the Guitar Strings vs. Chicken Wings annual battle of the bands at the Village at Squaw.
“First and foremost, I think our music is very danceable,” says Laughlin, who is also the owner of Tahoe City Kayak. “It’s hard to stand still or at least it seems to be as I look out on the people. It’s a good rock ‘n’ roll party vibe we put out there.”
Meanwhile, they’ve become one of the most enduringly popular local bands in a Tahoe music community that continues to raise the bar for small mountain towns everywhere.
“It seems like over the last 12 years the scene has been exploding,” says Laughlin. “The number of people who are here from semi-professional and professional musical backgrounds is just wild. The level of playing has really been on a skyrocket to the moon. Audiences and venue owners are open to original music and there is a fertile environment for that to happen. I know at least 20 bands in the area that could open for national acts and many of them do. Honestly, I’d pit our music scene against any small town of our size in America and I think we’d stack up pretty well.”
