Sip the Whiskey, Pray for Purification

Poor Man's Whiskey isn't exactly touted as a headliner of the 4 Peaks Music Festival, but the Bay-Area band has been on the ground floor of the festival since its inception. Look for them to play three sets this weekend while serving as an unofficial "host band" of the event. The bluegrass-turned-funky rock powerhouse very well could steal the show, and we caught up with PMW's mysteriously goofy, guitar playing, suitcase slapping, theremin attacking Eli Jebidiah to see what he has to say about his band, the festival, and his doppelganger and 4 Peaks emcee, the Reverend Cleopheas.

 On what 4 Peakers can expect for the weekend:

"We want people to feel, taste and smell and hear and experience us so that they come away fully lathered in Poor Man's Whiskey."

On the band's recent electrification:

"We became a bluegrass band because we couldn't get gigs as an electric band any more and people have responded to that. But now, it's come back full circle. We're pretty confused on those bluegrass instruments a lot of the time anyway."

On the Reverend Cleopheas:

"I talked to him recently over a set of hot spicy wings and he's pretty excited. I think people should pray, and pray dearly, that they will be ready for the amount of purification and holification and sanctification and musicfication that is going to descend upon them."

On Poor Man's Whiskey's hilarious-to-quite-hilarious onstage and off-stage antics:

"We have a 40-foot tour bus and we're pretty much in stitches the entire time. On stage we try to bring it together a little bit better. We're goofballs at heart and I think that permeates our lifestyle."

- Mike Bookey