If ever a band was aptly named, it’s The Georgia Thunderbolts.
Their sound strikes like lightning from a clear blue sky. Hearing them for the first time, it’s easy to blink-blink and ask, “Now…where did that come from?” This is legitimate, hard-driving rock and roll, old-school style. With a southern drawl. These guys are the real deal.
The band is made up of five young men: TJ Lyle (vocals, harmonica, piano), Riley Couzzourt (guitar), Logan Tolbert (guitar), Zach Everett (bass, keys), and Bristol Perry (drums). Ranging in age from 22-25, Bristol and Riley hail from Rome, and TJ, Logan and Zach from nearby Taylorsville, Georgia.
Rome remains true to its roots as a blue-collar town. For the most part, the locals are working class folks. More blue jeans than suits and ties. Lots of pickup trucks and American flags. But it’s an ever-changing town, too: demographically, economically, socially. This band’s music reflects the richness of the region’s heritage while embracing openness, optimism, and fresh ways of thinking. This is the New South, and it sounds good.
From football to footlights
The origins of The Georgia Thunderbolts can be traced back to the football team at Armuchee High School, where Riley Couzzourt and Bristol Perry were teammates. In the weight room, most of the other guys played rap music while they worked out, but Couzzourt says, “I would play a lot of rock music, metal and stuff. Bristol and I were the only ones who liked it, so that’s what brought us together.” Before long, they were playing music with Zach Everett, practicing, honing their skills, performing at open mic events around the area.
One of those open mic nights took them to Sixes Tavern in Cartersville, Georgia. That was the first time they heard TJ Lyle’s powerful rock-anthem voice. They were floored. Couzzourt says, “TJ has some pipes on him, man, no doubt about it. Everybody knows it.”
Perry says, “When TJ and Logan came along, that’s when everything took off.” The first song the band played together was Stranglehold by rock legend Ted Nugent. It was a watershed moment for everyone involved. About TJ’s vocals on that song, Couzzourt says, “We all heard him and said, ‘Yeah, this dude is what we’re looking for’.”
The combined talents of Lyle, Couzzourt, Tolbert, Everett, and Perry make for a great sound. It’s a big sound that pays tribute to the lords of rock they grew up listening to, but it’s also uniquely theirs. In one press release, Lyle says, “We’re going for that timeless and classic sound with a twist and newer attitude.”
The group’s publicist, Jon Bleicher, founder of Prospect PR, based in Maplewood, NJ, says, “The Georgia Thunderbolts are one of the most exciting bands I’ve ever had the opportunity to work with in the past 15 years. They are raw artists, powerful performers, and all-around great guys.” More and more fans of rock are beginning to come to the same conclusion as Bleicher. The fanbase is building, the band is steadily gaining momentum.