Pope Jane. Sounds like a Rupaul tour of the Vatican. Or maybe the female counterpart of David Koresh. Pope Jane is the western United States' ONLY all original band that plays four hour showcases. No one is sure why.

If you have recently wrapped up a roadtrip through New York, Texas, Alabama, Iowa, Washington, or the Dakotas, just to name a few, you may have picked up Pope Jane on the college FM dials. Not to mention the thirteen other states where Pope Jane occupies the airwaves. Pope Jane's debut 10-song tape, released last October, threaded its way through the Western U.S. like a spreading Tom Robbins book.

Pope Jane's universally understandable sound still remains unique enough to give birth to its won cult following. Their following, demographically, is as varied as your grandmother's wildflower garden. People who crave the groove that makes your soul swim make the mecca to Pope Jane. People who want vocal butter to spread smoothly over their heartburn enjoy Pope Jane, while pensively stirring their Long Island iced teas. All the people looking for raw, all the people looking for layered lyrics, the good-timers, the reflectors, the feelers, the dancers, the watchers... all of them find a common musical solace in the tonal language of Pope Jane.

What is fascinating about this is that in the very face of accessibility, there are those that still find tiny cracks in the skin of Pope Jane to settle into. It's as if they knew some deep secret about the souls of the woman in the band. If you haven't had the chance to taste Pope Jane, you can catch them at Casey's Golden Pheasant in Downtown Billings on the 12th and 13th of July. Be there or be bored.