Local band with something for everyone

Over the last few years, the music scene in Montana has been growing and evolving. The local community here in Bozeman highly values live music, making it a great place for artists to make a name for themselves. In 2008, lead singer-songwriter, self-taught guitarist and Livingston local Ashly Jane Holland decided to start her own band: Little Jane and the Pistol Whips.

The band’s origin story is much like any other. Holland reached out to her friends, Jody and Marcus Engstrom, to start a band. The Engstroms knew of a talented bass player, Russ Smith, in the Livingston area and asked him to join the band as well. “So we met Russ and we've all been kind of together since,” Holland said. Holland and Jody are the only Montana natives of the group, but everyone has lived in the Livingston area since 2008 when the band was founded.

Today, the band consists of eight members. Holland is the lead vocalist, songwriter and rhythm guitar player. Tom Murphy is on the mandolin and vocals. Russ Smith and Jody are both on bass and vocals. Quinton King and Marcus are both on electric guitar. Mike Singer plays the banjo, as well as Ethan Decker and rotating artists on the drums. Finally, the group features rotating musicians who play the fiddle.

The name Little Jane and the Pistol Whips is a play on Ashly Jane Holland’s name. Jane is her middle name, passed down from her grandma, and little is a play on the fact that Holland herself is very tall, she said. “ I joke that large Jane would not sound the same.”

The second half of the name — Pistol Whips – represents being from Montana. In Montana, “There's [a] rough and rowdy, Old West feel, back in the day, and if someone was out of line, you'd just be like, get in line!” Holland said. “People might take offense and I decided I'm gonna stick with it. That's what music is. This [name], for me, pushes more boundaries.”

Over the last 15 years, Little Jane and the Pistol Whips have produced two albums, one EP and three singles. Their music consists of a wide variety of genres, with some songs being more funky and some being more country. “There's something for everybody. There's bluegrass, straight country and there's this rock edge. So it's a fun discography or collection of songs,” Holland said.

Holland said many of their songs are inspired by her lived experiences while traveling. Her husband builds power lines and Holland accompanies him while he’s working jobs in the Southwestern United States. Their song “Lost to the Trade” is based on a true story about a lineman who died in Southern California.

Holland said she has always been musically talented and got her start on the piano at five years old. When she got older and entered middle school, Holland picked up the violin and eventually joined an all-girls choir. Growing up, she loved to sing but could not back herself up with instruments. So at the age of 26, she taught herself how to play the guitar.

Little Jane and the Pistol Whips plays local gigs on a seasonal basis as Holland travels South with her husband during the winters. You can stay tuned through their website and social media pages to keep updated on their upcoming gigs. They play at venues such as the Follow Yer’ Nose Barbeque in Emigrant, Ted’s Montana Grill in Downtown Bozeman and The Yellowstone Film Ranch in Paradise Valley.

The band's entire discography is available on all major streaming websites, as well as CDs.

For more information on upcoming gigs, the band itself, merch and CDs, head over to their website https://www.littlejaneandthepistolwhips.com/.