In February 2011, Larry Lambert and Jack Stokes began a friendship that, unbeknownst to either of them, would lead them to where they are now; working on their second EP together with Band of Stepbrothers.
Before ever meeting, Larry had written and completed a few songs with lyrics. Jack, on the other hand, spent the majority of his time composing a wide range of musical pieces. It wasn't long into their friendship that they realized this and started to combine Larry's lyrics and Jack's music. After a short time, they had five completed songs. They did a self produced EP with these five tracks. Out of curiosity, they decided to sell them around their town to get some feedback on their music. To their surprise, it was well received. With the support of their town, they started to become local celebrities. With this motivation, they started to work even harder in the studio. Larry, a fan of the show Swamp People, was inspired to write a song with the same name. "Swamp Man" has become Band of Stepbrothers most popular track. With this catchy tune in hand, Larry and Jack decided it was time to take the next step and get their music on local radio stations.
The first disc jokey that they approached listened to the first twenty-five seconds before shrugging them off with a definite, "no." This initial negative feedback dampened their spirits, but they knew to be successful in this industry they must learn to take these types of comments in stride. They continued looking for opportunities. Their [present] manager, Judy Southhall, booked them for a local music competition, "The Next Big Thing" in Camden, AR. Until this point, it had only been Larry and Jack, not a full band. In order to compete in "The Next Big Thing" Larry and Jack needed to fill in the missing positions of a drummer, rhythm guitarist, and bassist. Within hours of their live debut, Larry and Jack were three members short competing. Somehow, the two young men found drummer Seth Bradham, rhythm guitarist Dustin Angle, and bassist Cole Parker who all joined at the last second. After frantically 'throwing together' enough members to compete, the newly comprised five members of the band had less than three hours to pack everyone's equipment, teach the three new band members the songs, and actually get to the competition, which was forty-five minutes away. Regardless of the time crunch, they managed to get everyone packed, and learn the songs well enough to perform. Somehow, they scored more points than anyone that night and were in the lead going into the finals. They came in third overall but won the crowd vote, which counted towards twenty-five percent of the total score.
The local radio DJ who initially turned them down contacted Larry after the competition. He agreed to play the single on the radio if they had a quality track for him. They didn't. They then set out to find the nearest professional recording studio that would allow them the studio time to record on their limited budget. They found one in Pine Bluff, AR owned by a man that had originally lived in the band members' hometown, Hampton, AR, Mark Little.
Since meeting Mark Little, they have continued to create music together. They have sold over 500 albums locally and have even been contacted by the stars of the hit show Swamp People about the band's tribute song. They are planning to perform at their hometown festival this coming April and will be joined there by Elizabeth Cavelier, who is one of the stars of Swamp Man. Band of Stepbrothers are gaining wider spanned recognition but won't stop there. The band hopes to start touring within the next year.