Best Local Country Act

Trigger

Any band who have tried to create a scene know the difficult road ahead, but that hasn't deterred North Worcester County's Trigger, who've spent the past year working overtime to make themselves known to audiences at the Leominster's Country Lodge, Fitchburg's Top of the Hill, Shirley's Fort Club, and Framingham's Eagles Club. Formed in 1995 from the remains of Touch of Thunder (who opened for Garth Brooks guitarist Ty England in front of a packed Penitentiary), Trigger released their debut single, "Touch of Thunder," the following year. The group, who feature vocalist and guitarist Brian Kendall (from an early line-up of the Housejackers), guitarist Mike Babineau, bassist Dave Miller, and drummer Frank Pupillo, play Hank Williams to Garth Brooks with, according to Kendall, "a little extra push." The band's strong vocals make them a favorite with audiences. The group have more four hours' worth of material in their repertoire, including perennial dance favorites "The Watermelon Crawl" and "God Bless Texas."

Always looking to widen their appeal, Trigger have been adding a few pop songs into the act. "It started out as a New Year's Eve joke," Kendall explains. "As soon as it hit midnight, we announced we were going to change the direction of the band and played Green Day's `Basket Case' and Matchbox 20's `Push.'" The experiment worked so well, the group now have fans asking for their rockier tunes. "We keep the crowd line-moshing," he laughs.

After the Memorial Day weekend, Trigger will be hitting the campground circuit, including Methuen's White Buffalo, a summer country-music mainstay. They'll also compete in Q100's Battle of the Bands at the Singletary Rod and Gun Club in June. And if all goes well, there will be a Trigger CD available for the Christmas stocking.

-- Brian Goslow