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When Ryan Malott fused the punk rock he played and loved as a teen with the country music he had grown up listening to in rural Ohio, he thought he was onto something new.

Never mind that it was just a few years ago, and that Uncle Tupelo had pioneered the whole alt-country genre some 15 years prior. Malott wasn't ripping off that band — or any of the others who followed in UT's footsteps, such as Whiskeytown, Slobberbone or the Old 97's. He'd just never heard of them.

"That's the crazy thing about it — when I first started out, I listened to straight-ahead country bands and underground punk bands, and I didn't realize there was this big alt-country following until I started doing what I'm doing," he told The Daily Times this week. "I thought what I was doing at the time was completely original and had never been done. What was I — 19? 20? I was a rookie, really, and it wasn't until I started touring that I discovered all of these bands.

"At first it was a little embarrassing, because people kept comparing me to these bands I'd never heard of, until finally I decided to check them out. Now, the Old 97's and Lucero are a couple of my favorite bands; I listen to those guys a lot, and I understand how people think we sort of sound alike. I think we're a lot more punk rock than those guys are, but at first, I was like, 'Why the hell does everyone know these bands and I don't?'"

As it turns out, ignorance is bliss — for both Malott and for those who find his take on alt-country to be as exhilarating and fiery as a shot of 100-proof whiskey. There's a distinct Old 97's vibe to the band's sound but with more of a driving, energetic backbeat that lends an urgency to 500 Miles from Memphis's sound. The band has a self-titled debut under its belt, but Malott would rather focus on the new songs he's in the process of working up for a new record due out in early 2007.

"My first record was a rookie album, but I just kept at it and worked my ass off, and through trial and error I came up with the sound I settled on," he said. "I just generally try to write good songs and not worry about the genre so much. I hear about a lot of bands that try too hard to get a certain sound, but I just go with what appeals to me."

Although 500 Miles to Memphis is technically a collective
of musicians, it's Malott's project. In fact, he said, he's been through 45
band members. (Yes, that's correct — 45.)

"I've been the only band member in this project the whole time, and I write and record everything," he said. "I usually hire guys on to play live, but it started because I wanted to do a project where I was the lead singer and songwriter."

Malott grew up listening to Green Day and Social Distortion, while his parents' record collection was filled with such rogue country artists as Hank Williams Sr., Waylon Jennings and Johnny Cash. He spent one quarter at the University of Cincinnati before accepting an offer to play guitar for a country band in Dallas, where he lived for about a year. The name of his current band, he added, came during his long drive down to Dallas.

"I was just outside of Memphis, just kind of thinking of band names because one day I wanted to start my own thing, and I saw a mile marker — '25 Miles to Memphis,'" he said. "The way that rolled out of my mouth, it sounded good, so I kept it in my memory bands, and about a year later, when I moved back to Cincinnati, I pulled it out. I grew up in Bethel, Ohio, about an hour east of Cincinnati, and it's about 498 miles exactly to Memphis, so I went with 500."

Although many writers have connected Malott's sound to that of Memphis's most famous rock 'n' roller, Elvis really wasn't a factor in christening his new project, Malott said.

"I wouldn't say that I'm not an Elvis fan, but I'm not educated enough about him to say, 'Yeah, I'm influenced by Elvis,'" he said. "I chose Memphis because of its slogan — 'home of the blues, birthplace of rock 'n' roll.'"