Q: Hey, can you tell us a bit about where you come from, and what made you want to start a career in music?
A: I was born and raised in Austin, TX, and though even a lot of people who are from here find it kind of hilariously audacious to self-declare as the “Live Music Capital of the World”, there is an element of truth in that designation, in the sense that there are a lot of venues, used to be a lot of house shows. I started playing in my friend and eventual drummer’s basement at 15, played some talent shows in high school and had our first gig at 17, and I just haven’t stopped since.
Q: And what other artists have you found yourself listening to lately?
A: Oh man…a question I never feel I can answer completely enough. I’m a big Caroline Rose fan, and her new record actually just came out today so I’ve been getting the first feel of that and enjoying it so much. She’s an Austin local now and honestly I’m into a lot of local bands and feel that most of my friends should be legends…Magic Rockers of Texas, Star Parks, Matthew Logan Vasquez…Rickshaw Billie’s Burger Patrol is an absolutely mindblowing live act. And shout out to The Tender Things and their brand new record.
Q: Who were your first and strongest musical influences?
A: Dylan, Zeppelin, Beatles, White Stripes. Radiohead, the Strokes, Wilco a little later on. My taste and my life really changed when I finally understood what made the Stones uniquely incredibly special and not just sloppy Beatles, and that was about the time I got into Gram Parsons and the Flying Burrito Brothers as well. The Velvet Underground were a huge influence for a long time.
Q: You have just released your new single, ‘Remember When’. Is there a story behind it?
A: I suppose there is a story behind it, although it’s not the story told in the song. I was out at The White Horse, which is one of Austin’s most popular and at this point iconic honky tonks, to see my friend JD Clark and his band play. I just remember watching them and thinking, “I need one like that.” It was just kind of my attempt to write a driving honky tonk song, but with my own melodic approach to try and differentiate it a bit. At that point, it’s a matter of crafting words that hang together on a narrative, phonetic, and musical level, to the point that hopefully they just wash over you and form a singular piece with the music.
Q: Can we expect a new EP or even an album from you in the near future?
A: YES. “Remember When” is the first of probably a handful of singles I’ll be releasing throughout the summer of 2023, leading up to the release of my first solo LP Between Two Worlds, which is already finished.
Q: What do you feel are the key elements in your music that should resonate with listeners, and how would you personally describe your sound?
A: My approach is very cinematic. When I write and arrange a song, it is almost always done with the goal of creating an all encompassing atmosphere, or at least a deep and developed scenery in which your imagination can wander a bit. Lyrically I think I try to strike some balance between images, feelings, and broader truths about people, society, love, politics, inner darkness and how you navigate your way out of it.
Q: Do you feel that your music is giving you back just as much fulfillment as the amount of work you are putting into it, or are you expecting something more?
A: Probably both on some level…on one hand, there is serious therapeutic value in performing and in writing, and it is often through writing that I uncover things I didn’t know I knew, or I’ll find some juxtaposition that alters my perspective moving forward. So that is satisfying. And I certainly have been rewarded with some unbelievable life experiences–an international touring and documentary film project called Project ATX6 for one, for anyone who’s interested in looking that up. On the other hand, trying to grow and expand one’s reach as an independent artist that handles all aspects of the enterprise is often thankless and discouraging, and you have to develop a thick skin to be ignored or rejected for years. That said, I feel strongly about doing things myself, my way, so in the end you just keep pushing and making sure to stay in touch with that thing that Bukowski called the bluebird in the heart, the reason you started.
Q: Could you describe your creative processes? How do you usually start, and go about shaping ideas into a completed song?
A: For this record, of which “Remember When” is a fine enough example to discuss this, I just begin by trying to find a thread on the guitar, find the progression and the melody, and then begin to try to feel what story the music wants to tell. I’ll usually craft the words for a week or two in unwitting moments, making slow progress. And then for Between Two Worlds I did something I had never done before, which was to get really thorough demoing the songs, playing all the guitars, bass, piano and/or synth, and percussion, finding where the harmonies go. My friend and drummer on the project Wes then took my demos and added drums at his home studio. So we got a really close idea of how I wanted the record to sound before we got into the studio.
Q: What has been the most difficult thing you’ve had to endure in your life or music career so far?
A: I have thankfully always had the support of my family, my wife, and my friends. If there’s been any difficulty, it’s sometimes been a desire to make a ton of music, being more prolific or ambitious than I know what to do with, and then having difficulty actually finishing and following through on getting a lot of it out. The patience to put out my records “the right way” has not always been my strong suit.
Q: On the contrary, what would you consider a successful, proud or significant point in your life or music career so far?
A: Getting a full length write up and two 4-star reviews of my band Altamesa in The Austin Chronicle felt good, being a hometown kid. Being selected to represent Austin songwriters in Project ATX6 and travel to Thailand was a similar validation. In 2016 one of the bands I was in played at the Austin Music Awards the same night as Robert Plant; that kind of blew my mind. But this upcoming record is probably the most well crafted thing I’ve done, and I’m so proud of it and cannot wait for this whole release process to take its course so I can get it all out for people to hear.
