New Release: Tongue Hammer Drops Debut Single, “Billy Bill” [Video]

Tongue Hammer—a new Denver-based rock band featuring Jeff Franca (Thievery Corporation) on drums, Shawn Eckels (Andy Frasco & The UN) on guitar, Robby Peoples on vocals, and Stephen “Eski” Edwards on bass—has released its first single, “Billy Bill”, along with an accompanying music video.

Tongue Hammer first came together at a memorial service where Franca, Eckels, and Peoples were among the musicians who gathered to perform and rally behind their community.

“They had their own style and sound, and above all were pouring their hearts out in the name of love and rock and roll,” Franca reflected.

The trio’s chemistry was immediately apparent, so the three musicians decided to book a session at Denver’s Color Red Studios with no music written. They called upon Stephen “Eski” Edwards, front-of-house engineer for SunSquabi, to pull double duty, both engineering the session and playing bass. By the end of the first session, the band had four songs done, including its debut single, “Billy Bill”.

“It feels good to get together with a like-minded group and play what comes naturally to us. Our influences and experiences all seem to complement each other,” Franca said.

“Billy Bill” is a bluesy, guitar- and harmonica-driven song that tells the scandalous story of a band that breaks up during its first gig because the guitarist is sneaking around with the singer’s woman. The music video was written and directed by Jeff Franca and filmed by Jason Melino. Peoples wrote the song and Eckels’ wife, Tobi Eckels, stars in the video. Watch the video in the player below.

Tongue Hammer has completed eight tracks for its first record and will be releasing a steady stream of singles throughout 2023. For more information, click here.