The capital of country music has recently gotten a makeover for its rustic look. The Fun Girls From Mt. Pilot, which drags itself into Carbondale on Saturday, cross-dresses its punk rock in the spirit of the early 80s music that inspired guitarist Donnie Kendall to start the band.

I like to think we’re reminiscent of early Circle Jerks, who were my inspiration to start this band, he said, also citing the Sex Pistols as an influence. We have poppy-punk elements and we have hardcore elements as well, and we mix it together.

Besides the obvious sexual innuendoes of his inspiring bands, not to mention the Fun Girls’ costumes, Kendall is quick to point out that he, along with bassist Troy Pigue, are happily married.

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It should be said we are flaming heterosexuals, he said.

Kendall said being married has its advantages for the band.

My wife usually helps me pick stuff out, he said. My wardrobe consists of several of her hand-me-downs. It’s nice having a wife who helps you pick out clothes you get a few less looks holding up a skimpy dress in a thrift store.

Kendall and Pigue used to front Rednecks in Pain, a late-Eighties punk band that played Carbondale several times, including the riotous Halloween of 1990.

While Nashville is usually thought of as a conservative town stuck in the buckle of the Bible Belt, Kendall said the music community has been very supportive of the Fun Girls.

Really, Nashville is open to other types of music besides country, he said. That’s really a stereotype. We’ve got a number of punk bands in town.

Kendall runs a label and a fanzine, both named House O’ Pain, to help support the punk scene in his hometown with the help of Pigue and his wife.

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The Fun Girls of Mt. Pilot got its name from characters featured in three episodes of The Andy Griffith Show. The girls came to Mayberry from Mt. Pilot, the next town over, looking for a good time.

They were three girls pulled over by Barney and Andy, Kendall said.

They were wild girls who seduced them in the 50s friendly type way.

Kendall said the stage show evolved from the name.

Once we decided on the name, we just thought it would be funny to dress up like women for our first show, he said. It was so funny, we decided to stick with it.

The Fun Girls’ seven-inch, Lunch Box, includes a bargain-bin 45 RPM single selected at random, along with other useful items like plastic sporks and napkins. The packaging got the band nominated for best art direction in the annual Nashville Music Awards, along with best unsigned band.

We were just trying to make our seven-inch more special, he said. There’s so many seven-inches coming out now, we wanted to make ourselves stand out.

As if four grown men dressed in used lingerie don’t stand out on their own.

The Girls of Mt. Pilot plays at 10:00 p.m. Saturday at Patty’s Place, 760 E. Grand Ave. Carbondale’s Waxdolls, which is releasing its first cassette, will open. Admission is $2.