They’ve sold nearly 100,000 albums, hosted 12 festivals with crowds ranging in the 20,000, and are currently working on their seventh full-length album.

Even so, Ekoostik Hookah is not signed to any record label. They have done everything themselves since their start in a smoky, Columbus, Ohio basement back in 1991.

It was easy for Ekoostik Hookah to attract a following rather quickly. With their beginning members in already-popular Columbus bands, loyal fans were easily attracted to the new ensemble.

Things began to take off when a stranger who liked what he heard one night financed a trip to the studio that became Hookah’s first album, “Under Full Sail.” It wasn’t long after the first album was done recording that the members decided to take on the task of Hookah full-time.

In 1996, the group was hit with a revitalization when long-time friend Ed McGee joined the band, replacing a problematic rhythm guitarist.

“He would play between sets and open up for us now and then,” says Hookah bassist Cliff Starbuck, “We just knew he was the person.

“When you get a new song, you can put a lot of energy in to it. When Ed joined the band, we had 12 new songs,” he adds. “They gave us all a boost of energy. He gave us great stage presence.”

It seemed that with McGee the band found another great songwriter/singer besides Hookah co-founder and keyboardist Dave Katz. The lineup was finally falling into place.

In 1994, the band held a camp out in Katz’s and band manager Jeff Spencer’s backyard, affectionately called Hookahville.

“Dave had just bought some property out in the woods, about 20 acres, and so it was a benefit to get a drill for water,” Starbuck says. “But about 800 people showed up for the first one and then we just kept having it twice a year. We tried spreading the word and getting bigger bands. We kept it going.”

The increased popularity of Hookahville is directly related to the band’s success. Last year’s Hookahvilles XI and XII were attended by almost 20,000 people. The band has invited such acts as Leftover Salmon and the David Nelson Band to share the stage with them.

With all this success, Hookah still isn’t jumping the gun on any major label deals.

“We are pretty happy with the rate it’s growing so far,” Starbuck says. “Dave had some experience with the L.A. music scene back in the ’80s, and we realize that the industry pretty much sucks. You get big pretty fast, and then you get broke pretty fast.”

The band has surely proven they can make it without a major label and continue to march down the DIY road with their seventh full-length album.

“Every time we go in the studio, we learn more,” explains Starbuck about the band’s current studio trip. “You really never have the time to do what you want in the studio, because it costs so much, but we’ve finally been able to utilize what the studio can do. We used to worry that we shouldn’t record stuff that we couldn’t do live.”

Ekoostik Hookah may be finally realizing the magic of the studio but they have always had the magic of the live show. The band plays without a set list, playing whatever they feel the crowd will enjoy.

“We may have played the same show twice, but I doubt it,” Starbuck jokes.

With the band’s plethora of songs and spontaneous stage antics, Hookah guarantees no two shows are ever the same.

Upcoming shows at the Maintenance Shop should be no exception.

“Since we are playing two shows in one night, I would encourage fans to catch both shows because you will see two completely different shows,” Starbuck says.