Matthew Grimm was an unhappy business journalist struggling through the harsh reality of “the daily grind.” When he was 27 years old, he walked away from his job, started writing songs and soon, The Hangdogs was born.

“Going to work every day was draining my soul,” Grimm says.

The Brooklyn-based group has been together for nine years, and group members call themselves “independent spirits.”

The group is composed of Grimm on vocals and guitar, Texas Tex on guitar and keyboard, Automatic Slim on guitar, Rob Gottstein on bass and Kevin Baier on drums.

The Hangdogs’ style is a mix of rock and twang, but Grimm says the message of the music is much more than that — his political beliefs often come through in the music.

“I like to vent my personal frustrations through music,” Grimm says.

The band’s latest, “Wallace ’48,” holds dear to the hearts of Iowans. The album is named for Henry Wallace, and the album title and the title track serve as metaphors for the group.

Grimm worked for the Ralph Nader campaign during the last presidential election. He says he thought about Wallace as he worked for Nader.

“There are similarities between the Nader pitch and [the beliefs of] Wallace,” he says.

Wallace was an ISU graduate, scientist, Cabinet member and vice president under former President Franklin D. Roosevelt and a presidential candidate in 1948.

He developed strains of hybrid corn that make the plant yield more and became frustrated with the political restrictions on such technology.

“He knew he wasn’t going to win [the presidency], but there gets to be a point where you just have to say what you know to be true,” says Grimm.

Grimm relates to this in realizing that success for the band takes a backseat to communicating a message to the public. Wallace serves as a reminder to The Hangdogs to work for what the group believes in.

“In an era of glossy power-pop glitter children, we are at the very least able to produce records with a leftish point of view,” he says. “[Performing] is like controlling a shit-hole world for two hours.”

Even with this disposition, the band has had its run of conventional “success.”

They were listed on the front cover of USA Today and were named an “Up and Coming Act.” The ‘Dogs also had some air time on MTV2, with actress and activist Janeane Garofalo making a cameo in their music video.

After being dropped by their label, Shanchie, The Hangdogs went back to do-it-yourself producing and still manages to maintain a following.

“It’s tough to produce and promote yourself,” Grimm says. “Sometimes we need a dispersion of labor.”

But don’t be fooled by the sound that some critics have styled “country.”

“We are not a bunch of hillbillies wearing cowboy hats,” Grimm says.

“We are a knock-down, drag-out, live band.”

---

Who: The Hangdogs

Where: People’s Bar & Grill, 2428 Lincoln Way

When: 10 p.m., Wednesday

Cost: $3 cover after 10 p.m.