Jan 28, 2011 By Dave Zuchowski For Spinit 4 min read

Although local band Lovebettie has toured regionally from New York to Chicago and down the East Coast, its first national tour, scheduled to begin March 1, will also signal band members’ concerns for an important global issue.

The band’s 16-date, Boston to Austin tour, also known as the “Abolitionist Tour,” is designed to heighten the public’s recognition that 27 million people are enslaved worldwide and that as many as 700,000 people are trafficked internationally for sex, half of which are children.

“The tour is not a charity event to raise money but a rally to bring the problem into the forefront,” said Lovebettie percussionist, Larry Shotter, 29, of Uniontown.

During their three weeks on the road, the band members will discuss the phenomenon of human trafficking in radio and TV interviews in cities they’ll perform in and display banners and talk about the issue between sets at their various concert venues.

“We want to let people know that this sort of thing is still happening,” Shotter said.

For those who may not be able to make Lovebettie’s EP release party in Pittsburgh March 4 as part of the tour, Shotter suggests they watch the promo video on YouTube (by searching “Abolitionist Tour”) that shows what the tour is all about.

The band is made up of lead vocalist/keyboardist, Alexandra Naples of Greensburg, guitarist and backup vocalist, C. T. Fields of Greensburg, bassist Dan Mulkeen of Pittsburgh and Shotter on drums.

The percussionist describes Lovebettie’s musical style as rock with jazz, blues and funk influences, and their Facebook page lists Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, Radiohead, Beck, Red Hot Chili Peppers and Aretha Franklin as musical artists who’ve made a major impact on the group, which plays all original songs.

The tour begins in Boston, then continues on to New York and Philadelphia before returning home to Pittsburgh March 5 for the EP release party at the Altar Bar in the Strip District. The band’s new five-track recording is titled “Red Door” and is engineered and produced by major label producer Jim Wirt, who also produced albums for Incubus, Fiona Apple, Hoobastank and Trapt.

“One of the songs on the album ‘Are You out There?’ is about losing someone you love and opening a door to their memories,” Shotter said. “C. T. and Ali usually come up with the original ideas for our songs, but all four of us contribute our own input, which eventually makes the songs what they are. Ali, however, writes all the lyrics, and, currently, we have about 50 songs in our portfolio.”

Lovebettie began in 2005 as a songwriting duo of founding members Naples and Fields. Shotter joined the band in March 2010 when the previous drummer left.

“They phoned me asking if I could fill in until they came up with a new drummer,” Shotter said. “I stayed with them because the shows were going great, I liked the direction the band was taking and felt that we were like a family that got along well together, which is important when you’re touring on the road.”

In the past, Lovebettie has shared the stage with multitudes of national acts, including Lifehouse, Semi Precious Weapons, Tim Reynolds (Dave Matthews Band), Guster, Bowling for Soup, Rusted Root and many others.

In 2010 they were invited to perform The Lady Gaga Afterparty for her Monsters Ball Tour. The same year, they also released two music videos for airing consideration on MTV, VH1 and Fuse.

Regionally, Lovebettie has performed at the outdoor amphitheater near Station Square, the Palace Theater in Greensburg and at J Paul’s in Uniontown.

After playing New Orleans and Houston, they’ll end their Abolitionist Tour in Austin as part of the SXSW (South by Southwest) Tour, a huge Indie music conference that pulls in a multitude of bands who must be invited to perform in the event.

“Every venue has five or six bands performing on a single night, and SXSW attracts many VIPs of the music world, which makes it a great venue for networking,” Shotter said.

As Lovebettie makes its way across the country, the plan is to do video blogs at each stop and post live clips on the band’s Facebook and My Space home pages.

“We picked out the cities we wanted to include on the tour, and our manager, Jon Wian of Darkstar Entertainment, made it all happen,” Shotter said.

For more information on Lovebettie, go online to www.myspace.com/lovebettie or www.lovebettie.com.