Stephen Kellogg and the Sixers

On Gift Horse, their second album for Vanguard and fifth studio effort overall, Stephen Kellogg and his bandmates— Kit “Goose” Karlson (keys, bass, vocals), Brian “Boots” Factor (drums, vocals) and Sam “Steamer” Getz (guitars, vocals)—bring the rich legacy of American rock & roll into the present tense. This is thrilling music, muscular, immediate and life-embracing, steeped in tradition but addressing the present moment boldly and eloquently.

To get to this point in their evolution, SK6ERS (as their loyal fans fondly refer to them) simply had to come to terms with their collective identity once and for all, and producer Mark Weinberg had a hand in getting them there.

“Every time you make a record, you learn a whole bunch of new things, and this was no different,” says Kellogg, who formed the Sixers with Karlson and Factor eight years ago in Western Massachusetts. “When we met with Mark, he encouraged us to be unapologetic about who we are, not masking our influences but embracing them and running with it. He kept reminding us, ‘You’re not gonna be Bob Seger if you spend your whole life trying. You’re Stephen Kellogg and The Sixers, so just play this music the way you write, from your hearts.’”