This country karaoke night in L.A. is a rootin', tootin' hootenanny with a queer twist

“I’m cheery truthful I can’t bash the guitar solo,” quips Sam Buck.

A grin plays crossed his look arsenic the unmistakable jangle of Tim McGraw’s “I Like It, I Love It” wafts done the room. Members of the assemblage chuckle knowingly — the tall, bearded instrumentalist could perfectly shred it if helium wanted to, but connected this night, amusive trumps virtuosity.

Buck stands nether the brushed glow of Tiffany-style fixtures, his guitar slung casually implicit his shoulders and his brownish cowboy chapeau casting a shadiness implicit his achromatic denim jacket. Behind him, metallic tinsel sparkles, a Nashville-glam backdrop to the intimate signifier astatine Permanent Records Roadhouse, a cozy bar-cum-record store successful Glassell Park. He’s kicking disconnected the KFM Karaoke Country Revue, a monthly solemnisation wherever honky-tonk civilization meets the queer assemblage to toast, twang and tumble done songs similar aged friends successful a Garth Brooks ballad.

“What I emotion astir this amusement is that it’s similar Goldilocks — it’s ne'er conscionable right,” Buck says earlier announcing the night’s singers.

Rosie Ruell sings “El Toro Relajo” astatine Karaoke Country Revue.

This isn’t conscionable a showcase; it’s a haven. A spot wherever state music, with each its contradictions and complexities, embraces its messiest, queerest, astir joyful self. Trans, nonbinary, queer, gay, cis and consecutive performers each instrumentality the signifier with the aforesaid goal: to marque abstraction to observe state euphony for those who aren’t usually embraced by its stubbornly blimpish circles.

Over its two-year run, KFM, named aft Buck’s podcast KFM Country Radio, has drawn endowment similar Julianna Barwick, Dougie Poole and Jae Matthews of physics duo Boy Harsher. One of the night’s guests, Amber Coffman, the erstwhile co-frontperson of the Brooklyn-based indie set Dirty Projectors, stirs the assemblage with her rendition of “Hard Candy Christmas,” a Dolly Parton classical from 1978, which she officially covered successful 2020.

Attendees cheer performers astatine Karaoke Country Revue astatine Permanent Records Roadhouse.

L.A.-based vocalist Sedona, wearing a vintage T-shirt that says “Rodeo Girls,” performs a rocking mentation of Bonnie Raitt’s “Angel From Montgomery.” And Loren Kramar, an up-and-coming orchestral singer-songwriter, smolders done Little Big Town’s “Girl Crush.”

The microphone isn’t lone for seasoned performers; however, Buck ensures that the amusement runs smoothly by curating the lineup and requiring everyone to rehearse beforehand. The setup feels similar karaoke, with Buck cueing backing tracks, but determination is nary lyrics surface to thin on. “Bad karaoke tin beryllium truthful unsmooth if someone’s wasted oregon they don’t cognize the song,” Buck says. “[KFM performers] person to larn the song, and determination is immoderate attraction that needs to spell into it.”

For example, comedian John Early belts retired the Chicks’ “Wide Open Spaces,” prancing astir dramatically to choreographed moves, portion Nicholas Braun from HBO’s “Succession” watches from the audience.

Comedian John Early, who starred connected the HBO Max amusement “Search Party,” belts retired the Chicks’ “Wide Open Spaces.”

Other shows person featured comedians similar Kate Berlant and Casey Jane Ellison. Longtime KFM regulars similar Chloe Coover and Maddie Phinney, hosts of the fashionable perfume podcast “Nose Candy,” bring their ain fabulous flair — Phinney leaves a way of Céline’s blase Black Tie perfume, and Coover is dressed successful a full-length shot gown portion she sings NewSong’s fascinatingly sentimental Christian state ballad “The Christmas Shoes.” Artist Erin Bagley takes connected Fleetwood Mac’s 1977 country-rock “Silver Springs.” And Buck’s partner, JT Friedman, leads a raucous rendition of Alan Jackson’s “Honky Tonk Christmas” portion passing retired candy canes from a stocking.

Rosie Ruel, a hopeful popular prima who sunlights arsenic an vigor idiosyncratic and a existent property agent, belts retired the bombastic bullfighting opus “El Toro Relajo” (The Toublesome Bull), that some floors the assemblage and underscores a tenet of KFM: that the genre’s lines are meant to beryllium toed. Mariachi is truly conscionable Mexican state music, Ruel aboriginal tells me.

Sam Buck gives Maddie Phinney a day contiguous aft Phinney sang Squeeze’s “Tempted” astatine the Karaoke Country Revue.

Mary Rachel Kostreva, proprietor of the vintage eye-wear boutique Eyefi, delivers a sultry show of Melissa Etheridge’s “I’m the Only One,” her dependable dripping with earthy emotion. Growing up successful Georgia, Kostreva witnessed state music’s polarizing beingness — ubiquitous, yet embraced lone by those unafraid to assertion it openly. Among her peers, she recalls the acquainted chestnut astir listening to each genres but rap and country. A wry grin forms connected her face. “And present a batch of radical are like, ‘I lone perceive to rap and country,’” she says.

“Country is successful specified an absorbing place,” muses Buck, who is playing a amusement with Mercedes Kilmer (the singer-songwriter girl of Val) astatine Zebulon connected Feb. 9. Pop stars similar Beyoncé and Post Malone are experimenting with the genre, portion country’s ain Kacey Musgraves and Taylor Swift drift person to pop. Meanwhile, the manufacture is cautiously diversifying, but the enactment is uneven. “There’s not immoderate mainstream cheery musician,” says Buck. “I americium not definite determination ever volition be.”

Buck’s travel into the genre is its ain benignant of outlaw story. Born and raised successful coastal Massachusetts — a spot acold removed from the South’s storied hollers — helium grew up feeling similar an outsider for being a Miranda Lambert fan. “I’m a Yankee done and through,” helium says. “But anyone from a agrarian spot knows that state doesn’t person to travel from the Deep South. In presumption of stolen state valor, I’ve astir apt stolen much than most.”

JT Friedman, right, talks with Chloe Coover aft Coover’s performance.

KFM began arsenic a pandemic-era podcast. Buck spins state records, tells meandering stories and indulges successful crisp gossip astir region elite. “I person to beryllium careful,” helium jokes. “If I speech astir [so-and-so’s] ex-cop hubby and his disgusting bow-tie pasta, I don’t privation that getting backmost to her, conscionable successful lawsuit I extremity up playing a amusement with her.” He doesn’t shy distant from skewering arguable figures similar right-wing influencer Brittany Aldean (“She lone believes successful evil things,” helium says), but the podcast’s charm lies successful its premix of irreverence and authentic reverence for state music.

For Buck, who besides works arsenic an creator (and precocious showcased paintings of architecturally important L.A. homes astatine the historical Echo Park edifice Taix), the entreaty of the KFM Karaoke Country Revue — the adjacent 1 takes spot Jan. 23 — lies successful its intimacy and chaos. “It’s messy, it’s beautiful, it’s small,” helium says. “People consciousness similar they link with each different here. And successful a clip erstwhile everything’s astir getting bigger and louder, I deliberation tiny things are good.”

And arsenic the nighttime rolls connected — voices rising, drinks flowing and metallic tinsel shimmering nether the lights — Buck reflects connected the unusual universality of state music. “The much clip goes on, the much I recognize that everyplace is country. Especially Los Angeles.”