STRAY CATS will mark their 40th anniversary in 2019 with a new album and tour. Brian Setzer, Lee Rocker and Slim Jim Phantom--original founding members of the acclaimed American rock and roll trio--are heading into a studio in Nashville to record their first new album in 25 years.
 
Set to be released on Surfdog Records, the album will be produced by Peter Collins (Rush, Bon Jovi, The Brian Setzer Orchestra) and engineered by Vance Powell (Jack White, Chris Stapleton, Arctic Monkeys). Stay tuned for more details and an official release date.

First Single: “Little Pictures” Available Now →  https://taylormartin.hearnow.com/little-pictures

More about Taylor Martin at https://about.me/songdogs
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ASHEVILLE, NC -- Taylor Martin brings you music with a beating heart; his raspy, emotion filled voice is instantly recognizable and his lyrics have an unflinching sincerity. Martin releases his third album, Song Dogs November 16th Little King Records. On it, he spins tales of the highway, homes, lost love, love regained, redemption, and the overuse of cell phones. The Honeycutters’ Amanda Anne Platt took the lead as Music Producer (along with adding harmony vocals on a handful of songs) with the help of Co-Producer and Engineer, Robert George, and Martin’s visions for the album. The album was recorded at Sound Temple Studios in Asheville, North Carolina.

“Taylor Martin is a killer songwriter,” declares Platt. “He's got a great sense of melody and an ability to write classic, accessible songs about things we all take for granted. It's also to his credit that he hits all sides of the spectrum-- there are toe tappers and tear jerkers on this album and everything in between. I'm a big fan of the saying, ‘Great songs produce themselves,’ I certainly found that to be true in working with Taylor.”

Grand Prize Winners of the American Songwriter 30th Anniversary Songwriting Contest in 2016 with their single, "Devil," Illinois trio The Deep Hollow are gearing up for the release of their new full-length, Weary Traveler, on November 9th. With assist from producer Gary Gordon, The Deep Hollow expand further sonically with additions of cello, violin, and a muddier guitar, while remaining deeply rooted in thoughtful storytelling around themes of love, heartache, desolation, and persistence.

“I wasn’t totally sold on having a fuller sound. I was a little nervous going in,” member Micah Walk admits. “I was prepared to do it the way we did the last one. I’m really happy with the way it turned out, but it is a little different than our debut.”

Today, TDC is pleased to premiere the video for “Real Life," a mid-tempo folk tune led by acoustic guitar and flawless vocal harmonies that details the struggles of growing up in small-town America and waiting impatiently for “real life" to begin...until you realize life has been in front of you the entire time waiting for you to take it by the horns and forge a unique path. The video for the track beautifully complements the song's message as we find the trio in a field near a vintage pickup truck, with the vastness of the countryside paralleling the breadth of "Real Life's" possibilities.

Watch, and share, the video below then read on as the trio provide insight into the song and video.

Micah Walk: This was our first experience recording a video. Well, we’ve done some live acoustic ones, but never a video like this. It was a lot of fun, even though I was honestly a little out of my comfort zone at times! The videographer – Chris Withers – really gave us some great direction and made everyone feel comfortable, though. I think it turned out great.
 
Liz Eckert: Making this video was a dream come true! The setting was perfect for the vibe. A highlight for me was watching Dave jump out of the truck! But in all seriousness, as a little girl, I always dreamed of making a music video, and this one turned out perfect.
 
Micah Walk: I’ll let you in on a little secret: it would take a serious guitar geek to notice, but I’m not even playing a regular guitar in the video. The guitar in the video is actually high-strung (Nashville tuning), which is not even in the recording. That’s one perk about making a music video like this – you don’t even have to play the right instrument! 
 
Micah Walk: Musically, I think some of our favorite current artists – Jason Isbell, Brandi Carlile, Shovels & Rope - might have influenced this song, at least in terms of harmonies and the production. It’s really more about life experience in terms of subject matter, though. This song is simply about not being ashamed to be who you are, and not waiting around for someone else’s version of “real life.”  
 
Liz Eckert: This was an instant Deep Hollow song. Sometimes songs will be thrown out that we don’t have an instant connection with but this one was different. The harmonies fell out immediately. 

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Poet, politician, and provocateur, Nashville-based troubadour Matt Campbell is prepping for the release of his latest offering, The Man With Everything, on November 9th. Recorded and produced with Joseph Lekkas (Flour Sack Cape Records), The Man With Everything is an unflinching portrait of a songwriter striving to understand his place in the world with songs drawn straight out of American culture.

Today, TDC is thrilled to premiere one of the album's cuts, "It's Ours." Led by fiddle, mandolin, and brushed percussion, "It's Ours" shines as Campbell's unique vocals weave an American story that is hopeful, authentic, and relatable.

"The pipes are turning to rust
The floor is falling in and the roof is a must
Counting every coin in the jars
It ain't much but it's ours"

Campbell provides insight into the story behind the song,
"It was 5am on I-40 west of Knoxville and the song just landed on me. Heading home after touring, I was exhausted, drinking lukewarm coffee and singing the words to myself, half-smiling, half crying. It's about throwing one's lot in with another's, and the moments when all the patchwork comes together. It's very American to buy a house, and even more so to make it the embodiment of your hopes and dreams. I was going through the process myself, overwhelmed by the gravity of it in that moment, and the song turned out to be a love letter. The musicians we recorded with really made it flourish."  

Enjoy, and share, the song above.
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​Early next year, Eight 30 Records will release the digital collection, Sideman's Dream (And Other Stories) on Spotify, CD Baby, Apple, Amazon, and other streaming services. The new album features twelve songs including Verlon Thompson's moving title track (a tribute to Thompson's longtime musical partner Guy Clark), as well as tunes performed by Matt Harlan, Chris Fullerton, BettySoo, and more. “We're so excited to release Sideman's Dream (And Other Stories) through our friends at CD Baby,” says Jenni Finlay, who co-produced the dozen tracks with label co-owner Brian T. Atkinson. “This album shines a spotlight on some of our very favorite singer songwriters from the Lone Star state and beyond.”

​Sideman's Dream also includes first single, the reflective "Dreams Like This." Performed by Walt Wilkins, the previously unreleased song by Greg Trooper is the first since he passed two years ago and today, TDC has the true pleasure of premiering the song.

Led by Wilkins' singular, emotive vocals alongside a reserved acoustic guitar (and featuring a vocal cameo from the divine Jamie Lin Wilson), "Dreams Like This", with its uncomplicated, thoughtful lyricism and gentle melody, conveys an enormity of wistful romanticism that can simply be described as sadly beautiful.

"Shelter from a Monday rain
Standing under an elevated train
A knowing smile, a tender kiss
I still have dreams like this
I still have dreams like this

"I hope you're doing fine
As fine as you can be
Am I ever on your mind?
You have no idea what that would mean to me"

Wilkins reflects on his friend Trooper,
"I consider Trooper a true “Fellow Traveler.”   We played a lot of the same circuits, and met in Nashville when we were trying to get other folks to record our songs.  But it was clear he was a lot bigger than that game - a beautiful writer about real life, a natural & accessible performer, and a romantic with a huge, expressive soul.  He was one of the best storytellers ever.  And: I just liked the hell out of him, personally.  I wished we’d seen each other more.  Singing his songs keeps part of him with me."

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​NASHVILLE, Tenn. —Despite his two Grammys and a slew of writing credits on chart-topping songs recorded by some of the world’s biggest artists, Gary Nicholson doesn’t regard himself as famous. In fact, he’s so humble, he apologizes sheepishly about putting a caller on hold to take another instead of letting it go to voicemail. But who wouldn’t pick up for Ringo Starr? Or Willie Nelson, Bonnie Raitt or Buddy Guy? 
 
Even if he’s not a household name, Nicholson is one of Nashville’s most esteemed songwriters, producers and performers, with a credits list few others can match. His name appears on 600-some recorded songs spanning multiple genres, including the title track of Starr’s latest album, Give More Love; the title track of Guy’s new one, The Blues Is Alive and Well; the Merle Haggard tribute, “He Won’t Ever Be Gone,” on Nelson’s God’s Problem Child; and the first track of Keb’ Mo’s and Taj Mahal’s TajMo, 2018’s Best Contemporary Blues Album Grammy winner. Nicholson’s Grammys represent two of the five Delbert McClinton albums he produced and co-wrote. With the late Stephen Bruton, he also co-wrote “Fallin’ and Flyin’,” the song Jeff Bridges sings in the Oscar-winning film Crazy Heart.But Nicholson occasionally tackles his own projects; his latest, a song and video titled “God Help America,”due October 12, 2018 on Blue Corn Music, is particularly close to his heart. 

Nicholson says he was inspired to write “God Help America” because he believes that God has blessed America, but we still have much to work to do as a nation, and he wanted to address our current schisms in a way that might help bridge the chasms.

(Nashville, Tenn.) Nashville recording artist Richard Schroder has announced the release of his new single, “Almost an Angel,” to country radio on October 15. Produced by Grammy-nominated producer Matt McClure (Lee Brice, Kellie Pickler), “Almost an Angel” is the lead single from his upcoming six-song Amplifier Records EP, Skyline, coming in early 2019.

Punctuated by a chunky riff, drum-tight construction and dueling guitar solos, “Almost an Angel” represents a new creative level for the Bostonbased artist, both sonically and creatively. “When Matt first sent me this song I just loved it, and I felt I had to take a shot at it myself,” said Schroder. “Recording it was one of the best experiences of my musical life.”

The new release follows Schroder’s two successful previous singles, “Drivin’” and “Wildest Dreams,” both of which charted on the Music Row CountryBreakout Chart and received airplay on scores of country stations nationally. His Drive album has reached 300,000 Spotify streams and landed on more than 1,100 individual playlists, heady accomplishments for a debut independent release.

In preparing to record the Skyline EP, Richard Schroder partnered with with acclaimed writer Steve Seskin, a seven-time #1 hit songwriter for Tim McGraw, Kenny Chesney, and others. Together they both co-wrote and discovered the outside songs that became the new set. The goals and desires of the recording were simple from the start. “I wanna make music that somebody will really like, music that speaks to people. Personally, I’m having a blast and I want others to like what I’ve been so fortunate to enjoy. Writing songs, working with Steve, playing my music with these players, and being a part of the Nashville community.” He pauses. “I feel like I've climbed to the top of a mountain. Now I'm seeing the view and I realize, ‘Wow, there's a lot more room for me to climb.’”