Someone shouted “The Tangerines” last year at a coffee house in Bloomington, Ill. The name sounded good but it was taken, so the men decided to call themselves, “The Good Tangerines” instead.

Playing the guitar and harmonica last fall in the dorm hallways of Lincoln Christian College in Lincoln was not enough for Eddie Boyer and Phil Riley of Mattoon. Today The Good Tangerines promote their music at coffeehouses and college campuses throughout the Midwest.

The Good Tangerines, an alternative folk/country band, consists of two brothers, Eddie Boyer and Tyler Boyer. The Boyer brothers and Riley realized they had a gift for music at a very young age. Last year, they knew music was their calling.

“The first time I saw Eddie play at a coffee shop in Bloomington, I knew I had to play with him,” Riley said.

Just after starting the band in 2006, The Good Tangerines played its first show at Lincoln Christian College.

In the year that The Good Tangerines have been together, the band members have played across the Midwest including Chicago and Milwaukee, and traveled to Ontario this past July.

While in Ontario, they were graced with the chance to play with legend Don McLean and were suppose to play with Bob Dylan. Unfortunately, because of a tornado, Dylan was unable to attend the show.

Riley said they were disappointed they could not play with the musician.

The music that Riley and the Boyer brothers play is similar to the sound of Simon and Garfunkel as well as Bob Dylan.

After checking out The Good Tangerines on the band’s MySpace Web site, www.myspace.com/thegoodtangerines, for the first time, Tom Bikam was impressed.

“I’m impressed with their music and I’m sure if Simon and Garfunkel or Bob Dylan heard their music, they would be too,” said the sophomore communication studies major.

Bikam plans to attend the show soon.

With the seamless blend of harmony, guitar, banjo, harmonica and mandolin, a tiny guitar, the band describes its music as “simple and unique.”

“We are different because of the simplicity of our sound. It’s a refreshing sound from everything else that’s out today,” Boyer said.

The group’s music draws much of its inspiration and roots from artists like Gordon Lightfoot, Johnny Cash and Hank Williams. The Good Tangerines write its own songs, and find insight for them from own life experiences.

“We’re inspired by life and living life by the gospel,” Riley said.

Although the band is not considered a Christian band, the band members tell life stories through their music from a Christian point of view.

Rebeka Songer, a senior family and consumer sciences major, describes the music they play as very spiritual and inspiring.

“Even if someone doesn’t believe in any God, they will feel some sort of spirit from listening to their music,” Songer said.

The Good Tangerines have a favorite song to play because it gets each person involved, especially with vocals.

“One of our favorite songs to play right now is one we wrote called ‘Your Moves’ because of how all our parts and vocals fit together,” Boyer said.

Last December the band finished its first CD self-titled as “The Good Tangerines.” Four months later in April, Shut- Eye Records in Atlanta asked the band to be included on the signing label’s next compilation CD called “The United States of Americana,” which is currently available.

The band usually plays three times a week around the area when it’s not on the road. They will perform at 8 p.m. today in Common Grounds located on the corner of 17th Street and Charleston Ave. in Mattoon. They will also be playing the same time at Common Grounds on Oct. 6. The show is free of charge.

The band loves performing and plans on continuing.

“In terms of the future, we just hope to continue playing for people for the

rest of our lives,” Boyer said.

The most important thing to the band members is that it they like what they do and right now, becoming famous is not a priority.

“Being signed by a label is not all that it’s cracked up to be. Making a difference in people’s lives with our music is what really matters to us,” Riley said.