The Apache Relay

The Apache Relay
The Apache Relay
Origin	Nashville, TN
Genres	Folk rock
Years active	2009–2015
Labels	Dine Alone Records (Canada)
Members	Michael Ford Jr; Mike Harris; Brett Moore; Steve Smith; Kellen Wenrich; Ben Ford;
Website	theapacherelay.com

The Apache Relay was an American folk-rock band based out of Nashville, Tennessee. The band consisted of Michael Ford Jr (singer/guitarist), Mike Harris (guitar), Brett Moore (mandolin, organ), Steve Smith (drums), Kellen Wenrich (fiddle) and Ben Ford (bass and vocals).^[1] The band's name originated from a race-competition scene in the movie Heavyweights.^[2]

History

Formed in a dorm at Belmont University, they released the concept album 1988 in 2009 under the moniker "Michael Ford Jr. & the Apache Relay", later dropping the frontman's name for their follow-up 2011 album American Nomad.^[3]^[4] They opened for a number of Mumford & Sons tour dates, appeared at numerous music festivals, and a song from the album, "Power Hungry Animals" was used in the 2013 comedy film The Way Way Back.^[5]

In 2014 they released the single "Katie Queen of Tennessee" from their eponymous 2014 album The Apache Relay.^[6] They also recorded a cover of the Bruce Springsteen song "Cover Me" for the Dead Man's Town: A Tribute to Born in the U.S.A. compilation album.^[7]

Discography

Title	Details	Peak chart positions
Title	Details	US Heat ^[8]
1988	Release date: 2009 Label: Formats:	—
American Nomad	Release date: 2011 Label: Formats:	—
The Apache Relay	Release date: April 22, 2014 Label: Formats:	43
"—" denotes releases that did not chart