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Second Cup Cafe: I-Nine

You can take I-Nine out of South Carolina, but you can't take South Carolina out of I-Nine.

This southern rock band, made of up Carmen Keigans, (vocals) Bryan Gibson (cello, lead guitar) Brian Whitman (guitar) Matt Heath (bass) may have ventured out from their small hometown of Orangeburg, population 15,000, but they didn't leave their roots far behind.

Keigans, Gibson and Heath played in a band together before, but as fate would have it, the band broke up in 2004. They then teamed up with Whitman and found the right musical formula they needed all along.

"We knew that we had something there, the chemistry was clear, Carmen said. "It was a do or die moment," according to I-Nine's Web site.

The band moved to Columbia, S.C., and then ventured out to Atlanta to get more gigs. While in Atlanta, their limits were tested living in close quarters, but ultimately, their living situation paid off.

Infamous Hollywood director Cameron Crowe ("Almost Famous") took notice of the group when hearing their music on a friend's iPod.

Ironically, I-Nine fans can hear their song "Same In Any Language" on the Elizabethtown soundtrack, which is about reconnecting to your past and old hometown. The song was written by Crowe and his wife Nancy Wilson (of Heart).

The band has also worked with producer Brian Howe (Hinder, Daughtry) with "Seven Days of Lonely" and "Get Out."

Nickelback's lead singer Chad Kroeger also produced two of their songs, "Black Hole" and "If This Room Could Move."

I-Nine's new album "Heavy Weighs The King" will be available on April 29th.

By Melissa Castellanos

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