Author Archives: Michelle Evans

Some people call what Matt Woods does Americana, but he “has a hard time putting a label on things like that.” A lot of his songs are “very much based in classic country music while others are grounded in straight forward and greasy rock ’n’ roll,” Woods explains. “I write what is ready to come out and try to be as honest as I can about it.”

Woods has been a figure in the East Tennessee music scene for the past ten years and has performed in several bands as well as working as a solo artist. Woods has shared the stage with the likes of CAKE, Drivin’ n’ Cryin‘, Will Hoge, Two Cow Garage, Chris Knight, and many other musicians compiling a seemingly never-ending list of talented independent artists from points around the globe. Woods took some time out from his current tour with Adam Lee, “The Connoisseurs of Lesser Things,” to share a story about his love of vinyl.

“I must have been 10 or 11 years old the year I got my first real stereo and turntable. Mail ordered from the Sears Christmas catalog and awaiting me that early morning was the power to rattle the walls with rock ‘n’ roll in a way previously lacking in the toy record player with the cartoon scene from The Smurfs on its lid. All I needed was some vinyl (my collection of Alabama 45s wasn’t going to be enough.) We were used to my dad playing country albums around the house like Willie and the Family Live, tons of old Merle Haggard, and always Johnny Cash’s Folsom Prison Blues. I knew I wouldn’t be able to talk him out of those.

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As his fans already know, Frank Turner, an English folk-punk country singer, released his new single, “Recovery,” off his not-yet-released new record, Tape Deck Heart, on March 5th. Being a long-time fan of his music myself, I was anxious to hear it.

You see, I get scared sometimes. I get scared that a man with such a long history of making great music that consistently makes me really, really happy is not going to be able to keep doing it time after time after time. I go into his new songs with a tight gut and sharp ears, waiting for the other shoe to drop. But it never does. Ever. And this why I love Frank-fucking-Turner. His music and lyrics (seriously, the lyrics) have never failed to lift me up from dark places, make me think, and, most importantly to me, inspire me to take action and risks in my life.

Turner is currently touring the United States through March 15 and 16, where he will be playing The Black Heart Bar and Red 7 for SXSW, respectively. I caught up with him in New York to talk about Tape Deck Heart.

First off, how have the U.S. shows been so far?

Oh, they’ve been great. A lot of times, they’ve been sold out, and tonight is sold out, so I have no complaints. [laughs]

Oh, good! So you’ve mentioned that this record is a “break-up record.” It’s really personal. Does it make you feel more exposed and vulnerable to your fans?

Yeah, very much, although, I mean, there’s a degree to it that’s deliberate. You see, one of my theories about why some bands get less interesting is kind of that, you know, after making a lot of records, they get too guarded about who’s going to look into what they are doing. Everything gets a bit more generic, and you just simply don’t write like that when you start out, when you’re a kid in your bedroom pouring your heart out, so, when writing this record, I thought it was really important to do quite the opposite of the obvious thing, which would be to kind of get more generic. I decided to be the most exposed I could. It helps that I am kind of, like, in a moment in my life where I have lots of things on my mind that are personal. But, yeah, I really wanted to kind of write something personal. Also, art is not supposed to be comfortable, and I think now that I’ve quite succeeded in writing something so personal, I am now actually quite nervous about what people might think about this record.

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Like a lot of you, I’m guessing, I go to a lot of shows. There are many benefits to this, one of which is asking your favorite musicians who they’re listening to these days. Over the course of the past year or so, I noticed their lists almost always had two names in common: Townes Van Zandt and John Moreland.

That’s a hell of a thing for an up-and-coming musician to share a “must listen to” list with the late, great Townes Van Zandt (with whom I am already familiar), so I did what any good lover of music would do: I checked him out. Not only was I happy I did, but I also grew to understand why they were usually mentioned together: They’re both musician’s musicians.

How did you get started playing music?

My family is somewhat musical. My dad plays the guitar. I started playing when I was 10 years old when we moved to Tulsa from Boone County, Kentucky. I didn’t have any friends yet, and I was bored all the time, so I asked my dad to show me a couple of chords. I just kind of kept going from there. Then, you know, a couple of years later, I realized you could just, like, make up songs, so I’ve been writing songs ever since then.

How old were you then?

I was about 12.

So you’ve been doing that since you were 12?

Yeah, and throughout high school, I was in a bunch of hardcore bands.

Oh, who were your influences?

Um, well, back then, I really liked Converge and Pg. 99, and Minor Threat was my favorite band. Also, just a lot of DIY hardcore. At some point, that wasn’t really doin’ it for me anymore, and I kinda just started going back to music my dad had always listened to when I was growing up, like Neil Young and Creedence Clearwater Revival and stuff like that.

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We’re continuing our 10 Weeks of Vinyl Giveaways, our very own countdown to Record Store Day 2012, with a very special opportunity for Lucero fans.

They recently released their highly-anticipated eighth album, Women & Work, on their new record label, ATO Records (Drive-By Truckers, My Morning Jacket).

Women & Work is “a love letter from Lucero to its hometown, Memphis, TN,” featuring country and soul influences from records like Delaney & Bonnie’s first album on the Stax label, Home.

And guess what? We’ve got an autographed record to give away to one of you.

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I caught up with Austin Lucas at a new basement bar and music venue in Knoxville called The Well (where, coincidentally, the talented-in-his-own-right Matt Woods has his day job). When I heard this was his last stop on a U.S. tour filled mostly with house shows and intimate venues, I knew I had to see him.

I have seen Lucas perform twice before: once with his back-up band The Bold Party in Shepherdstown, WV, and once while he was touring with Glossary as his back-up band when they opened for Lucero in Nashville. This time was different, though, because I got to see him by himself, and there is nothing I love more than seeing a musician perform with nothing but his guitar and his voice (and oh, what a truly incredible voice it is).

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