Alt country meets Southern Rock for Patterson Hood (Created May 22, 2013)

Patterson Hood is one of the five current members of the alternative country and Southern Rock band known as the Drive-By Truckers. Son of bassist David Hood of the legendary Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section, Patterson was born into a musical family and began writing songs by the age of eight.
So where does one go as a child prodigy, of sorts, when trying to map out a career in the family biz? Hood took up residence with some local rockers by the age of 14, and in college formed the band Adam's House Cat. The group won Musician Magazine's Best Unsigned Band competition just three years later, but failed to gain any traction despite widespread popularity in the region.

Hood's friend Mike Cooley, who played in Adam's House Cat, helped him form Drive-by Truckers in 1996 after both men relocated to Athens, Georgia. Their first album, 1998's "Gangstabilly," was followed three year later by the double-disc "Southern Rock Opera." Nationwide critical acclaim followed, and the band secured a deal with Lost Highway Records. Still, the partnership didn't last.

The follow to "Southern Rock Opera" was a project the band called "Decoration Day," and its more muted, somber tone failed to strike a cord with execs at the label. Hood and the group later bought the album back from Lost Highway and took the work to an indy label, where it bowed to rave reviews in 2003.

Hood's solo career has also had similar ups and downs. From his first set of acoustic demos (a collection he labeled "Killers and Stars") to the 2012 release of "Heat Lightning Rumbles in the Distance," the collection of songs have covered much darker periods in his life set far apart from Drive-By Truckers. Still, he describes the newer tracks as the most personal and intimate of his career, and you can hear them in person as he travels the country with the Downtown Rumblers through July 2013.