JUANITA FAMILY AND FRIENDS BIO AND PRESS CLIPPINGS:

    Lana Rebel (Bassist for former noise-rock band Last of the Juanitas) introduced
Juanita Family and Friends as a venue for the stockpile of country songs she’d been
writing on the side. Influenced by the great songwriters of the golden-country era such
as Hank Williams, Willie Nelson and Lefty Frizzell, Lana’s songs are stark tales of love
and heartache. Her sweet melodies and simple guitar lines welcome you to come on in
and make yourself at home.
   With a group of friends to back her up, including John Schier (Last of the Juanitas)
on drums and Ben Wildenhaus (Federation X) on piano and lap slide, the band inde-
pendently released their self-titled CD in September of 2004. After playing Rock venues,
roadhouses, parties, crawfish boils, festivals, rodeos, radio stations and street corners
across the country, they are proud to report nearly selling out of the first 1500 with little
help from national distributors.
  The CD has received positive response from DJs across the globe. This spring, the
family was invited to record a BBC One Music session at the infamous Maida Vale
studios for Huw Stephens. They were recently added to playlists for the legendary Bob
Harris (Old Grey Whistle Test). NPR has posted a track on the “Open Mic” webcast
for All Songs Considered. Regionally, it continues to get airplay, is a favorite on local
jukeboxes, and was chosen as best Northwest Country by KBCS’ Christine Linde.

Click for band photo

“The Juanita Family is a crying-eyes heartbreak outfit, channeling George Jones hurt and
Loretta Lynn magnetism through the pure eloquence of frontwoman Lana Rebel.”
        --Grayson Currin, Independent (Raleigh, NC), March 2005

“Rebel’s vocals are smooth and languorous, the minimalist backing warm and gentle…
This is one of those albums that starts off sounding pretty good and then just gets more
impressive every time you play it.”
         —John Conquest, 3rd Coast Music, May 2005

“With her warm, melancholy voice and easy stage demeanor, her performances are
seemingly effortless, making every stage the Juanitas grace feel more like a casual
pickin’ party…”
        --Carey Ross, Bellingham Weekly, December 2004

“The Juanita Family’s debut release is homey and comfortable like an old porch couch
with plenty of visceral memories built in from broken hearts to spilled beer”
        --Lance Chess, Portland Mercury, September 2004

“Lana’s voice is so scraggy-warm and lilting you might faint or spill a tear into your Pabst”
       --Julianne Sheppard, Portland Mercury, August 2001