Heard

Longview, Texas garage band the Heard was formed in 1965 by twin brothers Andy and Randy Clendenen, who together shared guitar duties, in tandem with organist Billy Hazard, bassist Bill Lewis, and drummer Jack Batman (yes, his actual surname). According to a profile in the first issue of Brown Paper Sack Magazine, within a year the famously noisy band was a steady presence on the rural East Texas high school and community center circuit, and in time their bookings graduated to clubs in Dallas, Houston, and Austin, most notably a series of gigs at Houston's Catacomb Club. Ultimately, the Heard entered Robin Hood Brian's Studio in Tyler, Texas to record their lone single -- cut with the aid of a tape-delay echo device called "the Cooper Time Cube" that succeeded in almost completely obscuring Andy Clendenen's vocals. The crazed "Exit 9" now stands as a landmark of Texas psychedelia, although its lyrics are, in fact, resolutely anti-counterculture. An aggressive cover of the 13th Floor Elevators' perennial "You're Gonna Miss Me" rounded out the single, issued in 1967 on the One Way label. Although the record is today regarded as a classic by garage and psych collectors, the Heard dissolved soon after its completion, as college and military duty forced its members in opposite directions. Both sides of the One Way release were reissued in 2003 by the Break-A-Way label as part of the ten" The Heard Meet the Only Ones: Lone Star State 60s Punk. © Jason Ankeny /TiVo