How They Learned to Howl

Band: Chickasaw Mudd Puppies.

Personnel: Ben Reynolds, guitar, vocals; Brant Slay, vocals, harmonica, percussion.

History: Reynolds and Slay met three years ago as art students at the University of Georgia in Athens. Though neither was an experienced musician, they combined Reynolds’ love for Howlin’ Wolf and Slay’s fondness for Tom Waits and Patti Smith and began playing and writing together, taking their name from the Chickasaw River in Alabama, where their car broke down on the way to a show. Fellow Athenian Michael Stipe of R.E.M. produced a debut EP that was released by Polygram last year. Stipe returned to produce half of the recent album, “8 Track Stomp,” with blues great Willie Dixon doing the other half.

Sound: The Puppies’ music is just like the group--part blues student, part art student. The former seems to come naturally: heartfelt hillbilly grunge with Slay’s yowling vocals, Reynolds’ dirty guitar and a hellhound-on-their-trail boogie beat. The latter is a bit forced. The back-porch ambience and yee- haw interjections seem extraneous on the recordings and were an outright annoyance when the duo opened for the Waterboys at the Universal Amphitheatre in December, with Slay in moonshiner’s overalls, seated in a rocker, a-stompin’ and a-grinnin’ like a fool. Show: Monday at Triton Pub, UC San Diego, Tuesday at the Roxy, both opening for the Feelies.