Country Fried Rock 1520: T. Hardy Morris Buries Dead Confederate and Goes Solo
Summary
In this episode from 2015, we sit down with T. Hardy Morris, best known as the frontman of Dead Confederate, to talk about how his music has evolved and what went into making his latest album, Drowning on a Mountaintop.
Hardy opens up about the creative process behind the record, including how he’s been experimenting with different sounds, like blending pedal steel into a rock setting, and how that’s shaped the feel of the album.
We also talk about the collaborative nature of his work. He shares stories from his time with the supergroup Diamond Rugs and reflects on the strong musical relationships he’s built over the years.
Throughout the conversation, Hardy gets into how his lyrics and music come together, usually in a pretty natural, unforced way. His songwriting leans into both his country roots and the raw edge of grunge, and Drowning on a Mountaintop really shows that mix.
If you're curious about how genre lines blur, or how an artist stays grounded while constantly growing, this episode gives a great look into Hardy’s creative world.
Show Notes
In this episode, we catch up with T. Hardy Morris to talk about his latest solo album, Drowning on a Mountaintop, and the path that’s led him here.
- Hardy, known for his work with Dead Confederate and the supergroup Diamond Rugs, shares stories from his early days growing up in Augusta, Georgia. Those early community experiences helped shape his creative outlook.
- We talk about how his sound has evolved over time, landing in a space that blends rock and country in a way that feels both fresh and familiar.
- The conversation takes a closer look at the making of Drowning on a Mountaintop, including how working with producer Adam Landry helped shape the album’s tone and texture.
- Hardy opens up about his songwriting process, especially how lyrics and music come together naturally for him, with an emphasis on honesty and emotional impact.
- Whether you’re a longtime fan or just discovering his solo work, this episode offers a real look into Hardy’s creative world and what drives him as an artist.
Links
- T Hardy Morris
- T Hardy Morris on Bandcamp
- You may also enjoy our conversation with Folk Family Revival
- After you buy music or see a show, we'd love your support with a few bucks in our Tip Jar
- Sloane Spencer now hosts a Gen X sleep podcast, Sleep with Rock Stars
Chapters
- 00:08 - Introducing T. Hardy Morris and His New Album
- 03:03 - The Evolution of Sound: Collaborating with Adam Landry
- 08:25 - Exploring the Intersection of Country and Grunge
- 12:57 - New Connections in Music
- 14:29 - Transition to New Music Ventures
Takeaways
- Hardy talks about his new album, Drowning on a Mountaintop, which brings together a mix of rock and country influences in a way that feels fresh but grounded in tradition.
- He shares how his songwriting tends to evolve naturally, and how experimenting with pedal steel helped shape the album’s sound.
- Collaboration plays a big role in his creative process. Hardy talks about working with other artists and especially highlights the impact producer Adam Landry had on this project.
- There's an interesting conversation about the link between grunge and southern rock. Hardy points out that both genres have a rural quality that people don’t always recognize.
- He gives a quick update on what's next, including touring plans and some recording time with Dead Confederate. The band isn’t done yet, just taking things slow.
- The episode wraps up with a real talk about how tough it can be to connect with audiences in today’s crowded music world. Hardy reflects on the challenges of staying visible without losing authenticity.
Mentioned in this Episode
- Danger Bird Records
- Diamond Rugs
- Dead Confederate
- Reverb Nation
- Drive By Trucker
- Meat Puppets
- Justin Collins
- Delta Spirit
- Deer Tick
- Chase Park
Recommended If You Like
Country Fried Rock, T. Hardy Morris interview, Dead Confederate, Diamond Rugs supergroup, Drowning on a Mountaintop album, Danger Bird Records, indie rock podcast, southern rock music, pedal steel guitar, songwriting process, Americana music, music collaborations, grunge and country fusion, Athens music scene, music production, lyrical songwriting, vinyl records, music industry insights, emerging artists, country music podcasts
Transcript
Speaker A
Welcome to Country Fried Rock. This week we're talking with T. Hardy Morris, frontman for Dead Confederate, as well as part of the Diamond Rugs indie rock supergroup.
Morris is also known for his solo work with a brand new album out from T. Hardy Morris and the hard knocks called Drowning on a Mountaintop, out now on Danger Bird Records. You're listening to Country Fried Rock and I'm your host, Sloane Spencer.
Speaker B
Where are you now?
Speaker C
I still live in essence.
Speaker B
But you're originally from Augusta.
Speaker C
Yep, that's where I was born and raised. Down. Down. Well, just outside of Augusta.
But yeah, essentially we used to float the river and we would moon everybody as they went across the icewinning bridge.
Speaker B
You're a pretty busy guy with not just solo projects, but some band things as well. What has led to this most recent album that just came out?
Speaker C
Kind of a natural progression of things. I'd made a solo record a couple years ago and kind of did a little more slowed down acoustic. Yeah. Songs that I had. And I just. I don't know.
My friend Matt Stoessel, who plays pedal steel, we had kind of explored a little bit.
I'm a big fan of the pedal steel and the way it works within songs and I just wasn't quite through exploring the pedal steel and the ways it could work within the songs that I write. So we took it a step further and kind of did more of a rock and roll version. You know, just see what came about.
And down on the mountaintops where we wound up kind of bummed our Dead Confederate drummer. And so that took it to a place where it had to be a little more heavy handed and it was a lot of fun.
Speaker B
I noticed in the background we are unintentionally having an Adam Landry year on Country Fried Rock. Was your connection to him via Diamond Rugs?
Speaker C
Yes, exactly. First met Adam when we.
When we did the first Diamond Rugs record, we just kind of spoke the same language in the way we learned, like to create music and just recordings in general. Just kind of the same ethos as far as recording and just kind of letting it happen.
And he's got a good ear to kind of help us sift through the songs, you know, because I'll come in with a lot of stuff, a lot of ideas and we kind of can focus on certain ones and he's just easy to work with for me and the way I like to work. This one we did actually in Athens.
We wound up mixing a little bit over at his place in Nashville, but we recorded it here At a studio called Chase Park. Had a lot of good records come out. I was expecting my daughter essentially any day, so we kind of had to. Had to record it here. Proximity.
Speaker B
Congratulations.
Speaker C
Thanks. I've done a little bit of touring since she came. You know, even that had to slow down a good bit. You know, shoot out and do a few and come home.
Nothing too extensive. There's a lot of dates, but it's. You know, they're not all just back to back, three months at a time or whatever like I used to do.
Speaker B
With so many different projects going on, how do you filter songs?
Speaker C
Usually I just kind of know right off the bat. It just has the feel of where it should wind up. Every once in a while, they'll cross paths, but for the most part, it's all in my head.
I don't really know how to explain it, but I can just kind of tell where it needs to wind up.
Speaker B
We were saying originally there's some changes.
Speaker A
From the sound of audition tapes to.
Speaker B
This record with Drowning on a Mountaintop. And it's not just instrumentation. How do those come about for you? You kind of hinted that perhaps they developed a bit with Adam Landry.
Speaker C
We had done.
When we did the first Diamond Ruggs record, there was a song called Country Mile that kind of had this heavier verse, kind of stone and rock verse, and then it veered off, and the chorus was country. I called it the country part.
And then there was another song called Share the Needle on audition tapes that kind of had that same push and pull between the verse and chorus. And Adam and I were just. We were talking after. After a show one night.
We were kind of like, what do a whole record that's like that, you know, that has that. That kind of push and pull throughout it and kind of really exploit that idea. Because a lot of people seemed really drawn to those songs.
You know, they didn't seem as crazy to me, but other people were like, oh, that's crazy how that happened, you know, And I was like, oh, well, people seem to like that. Let's just try to go for it. So, yeah, just kind of went with that idea. I mean, we don't. It's not. Doesn't happen on. On every single song.
And we didn't try to force it. It kind of works for the way I write the stuff I like and for my vibe. I think it worked out pretty good.
Speaker A
Hey, y'.
Speaker C
All.
Speaker A
This is Sloan Spencer, the host of Country Fried Rock. We've had an incredible year with more people finding us on the radio. And our podcast than we ever imagined. Thank you all so much.
Careful what you wish for.
You just might like to send a big thank you to our Country Fried Rock listeners for supporting Country Fried Rock alum Alan Thompson, who is recovering from a diving accident.
If you'd like to donate Every Dollar Matters and it goes directly to helping defray his bills, you can find that link on Country Fried Rock's Facebook or Twitter. It's a you caring donation page. Keep your ears peeled for a few different benefit shows in the Nashville area for Alan Thompson.
Speaker B
We love you, man.
Speaker A
Get better soon.
Speaker C
Hey, this is Pete Hardy Morris on Country Frad Rock.
Speaker B
You can listen to this record and miss some of what you're saying, and then you hear it, like the third or fourth time, you're like, holy cow.
Speaker A
That'S a great line.
Speaker B
A lyrical versus music contrast as well.
Speaker C
Lyrically, the album, a lot of it is. I don't know, I write a lot of stuff pretty quickly when I'm writing the lyrics. So a lot of times I don't even.
I don't know exactly what I said until after I hear it back, and I'm like, oh, that was kind of pointed or whatnot. But yeah, and especially that. That stuff happened.
That album happened kind of fast, the writing of it, because I went in with a lot of ideas lyrically. Yeah. Song by song and just kind of finishing them on the fly. Some of them were.
Speaker B
They always fleshed out before you got into Chase Park.
Speaker C
Pretty close. I mean, I was still writing some lyrics as we got into Chase park, but I think that's fine. That that works for me. Just kind of the way my brain is.
I've always been a little add, so I don't know. And sometimes. And I don't think that a lot of those lines you're speaking of or I'm talking about would really come about.
If I sat down alone with my pen and, you know, tried to labor over it. It might sound a little labored or might sound a little dramatic. You just speak what's on your mind. Sometimes it makes more sense.
Speaker B
Was there some time between completion and release?
Speaker C
Yeah, there was. There was a little bit, I guess.
We were done recording a year ago, and then we spent a little bit of time mixing it kind of sat for a little bit while the baby was born, and then I was home doing that whole thing, learning how to change diapers and all that stuff.
And then we got around to mixing, and that even took a little bit longer because we wound up going back over to Adams and doing a couple things just because we had to mix it so fast. Everybody just was busy. We mixed it and then we had a couple more things we wanted to do, so we fixed those over in Nashville and then finally done.
Speaker B
Who else else was able to help.
Speaker A
You fill out the sound you wanted?
Speaker C
Vaughn Lamb is who plays bass on the record and plays bass in the Hard Knocks. He's a local Athens bass player. He's played with, you know, a lot of bands around here, but I just like his style and vibes.
He's kind of got this noodley hippie punk thing going on that I like. Kind of fits what we're doing.
Speaker A
Hey y', all, this is Sloane Spencer, the host of Country Fried Rock. Those of y' all who listen on our podcasts, it's a quick hit of just the conversation.
If you want the full radio program with all the songs that we talk about, ask for it on your local radio station, joining 20 other stations across the country. Get the goods@country friedrock.org hey y', all, Country Fried Rock has a few cool new things going on that we've been teasing for a while.
Pop on by countryfriedrock.com scroll down on the right hand side of the screen or just keep on scrolling if you're on mobile. Down at the bottom, we're doing a quick listener survey. Find out a little more about what y' all want as we plan now for 2016.
I know it seems so far away, but actually we've already got a very cool thing up our sleeves that will be happening while I'm in Nashville next month.
Speaker B
So.
Speaker A
Looking forward to that. Speaking of which, lots of Country Fried Rock alums are going to be playing Americana Fest in September and we'll be hanging out that week.
Come on by and say hello.
Speaker C
Hey, this is T. Hardy Morris. Get more info at T.
Speaker B
What kind of stuff was speaking to you? Because there's, you can hear a lot of different things going on in the different songs on this record.
Speaker A
Specifically.
Speaker B
I got a little Nirvana on some of it.
Speaker C
Oh yeah, that was one of the things I was trying to convey with the record is, you know, you don't really think of, of like country music or, or Southern rock and grunge really sitting hand in hand. But to me, they're, they're not that really that far off. They're both kind of come from a rural sounding place to me.
You know, I don't know, just sounds like what I, that's what I grew up on. But I think they're a little Closer fit than a lot of people give them credit for. Especially like southern rock and grunge music.
What the real early versions of grunge music, you know, those are.
A lot of those bands were from out in the middle of nowhere, you know, kind of coming up with these ideas in the garage and southern rock with, you know, just these wood shedding out in the middle of nowhere in the. In the South. I don't know, they're just both kind of rural.
So I thought that the pedal steel and that country sound works a little better than you might think with the heavy handed side of grunge. Yeah, the Meat Puppets kind of. Kind of did that. They always had had a country vibe going on, kind of country punk. So there's definitely. And I've.
I've toured with those guys before and we've talked music a good bit. They're kind of buddies and I mean it's a little. A lot of the albums are a little more heavy handed than Meat Puppets. But I kind of.
They're often a band that I kind of have a touchstone in the studio that I kind of. When I hear Becca's song, I'm like, I wonder if Kurt and Chris would like this song. I'm like, yeah, I think they would.
Speaker B
There's a particular song I want to ask about. Who is the other voice on?
Speaker A
It's either quiet or quieter.
Speaker C
That's Justin. Who? Justin Collins, who's was the other producer on the record. Justin co produces a lot of stuff with Adam.
He did audition tapes and the Diamond Rug stuff. He's also a musician, singer, songwriter over in Nashville. His stuff's awesome. It's really good.
Speaker B
How have some of those relationships come around for who you get to go on tour with?
Speaker C
Well, you know, I've known the Drive By Trucker guys for a long time. From Day Confederate touring with them. They took us to the west coast. The first time we ever toured on the west coast.
We just always have kept in touch. Patterson and I specifically. He's been kind of a good proponent of my stuff, solo stuff and decofederate and so yeah, it's just.
I don't know, I feel like we're the band that when they just have to go do some one off shows, they're always like, hey, you want to come play? That's just local connection. You know, they.
They live here...
Transcript
Welcome to Country Fried Rock.
Speaker A:This week we're talking with T. Hardy Morris, frontman for Dead Confederate, as well as part of the Diamond Rugs indie rock supergroup.
Speaker A:Morris is also known for his solo work with a brand new album out from T. Hardy Morris and the hard knocks called Drowning on a Mountaintop, out now on Danger Bird Records.
Speaker A:You're listening to Country Fried Rock and I'm your host, Sloane Spencer.
Speaker B:Where are you now?
Speaker C:I still live in essence.
Speaker B:But you're originally from Augusta.
Speaker C:Yep, that's where I was born and raised.
Speaker C:Down.
Speaker C:Down.
Speaker C:Well, just outside of Augusta.
Speaker C:But yeah, essentially we used to float the river and we would moon everybody as they went across the icewinning bridge.
Speaker B:You're a pretty busy guy with not just solo projects, but some band things as well.
Speaker B:What has led to this most recent album that just came out?
Speaker C:Kind of a natural progression of things.
Speaker C:I'd made a solo record a couple years ago and kind of did a little more slowed down acoustic.
Speaker C:Yeah.
Speaker C:Songs that I had.
Speaker C:And I just.
Speaker C:I don't know.
Speaker C:My friend Matt Stoessel, who plays pedal steel, we had kind of explored a little bit.
Speaker C:I'm a big fan of the pedal steel and the way it works within songs and I just wasn't quite through exploring the pedal steel and the ways it could work within the songs that I write.
Speaker C:So we took it a step further and kind of did more of a rock and roll version.
Speaker C:You know, just see what came about.
Speaker C:And down on the mountaintops where we wound up kind of bummed our Dead Confederate drummer.
Speaker C:And so that took it to a place where it had to be a little more heavy handed and it was a lot of fun.
Speaker B:I noticed in the background we are unintentionally having an Adam Landry year on Country Fried Rock.
Speaker B:Was your connection to him via Diamond Rugs?
Speaker C:Yes, exactly.
Speaker C:First met Adam when we.
Speaker C:When we did the first Diamond Rugs record, we just kind of spoke the same language in the way we learned, like to create music and just recordings in general.
Speaker C:Just kind of the same ethos as far as recording and just kind of letting it happen.
Speaker C:And he's got a good ear to kind of help us sift through the songs, you know, because I'll come in with a lot of stuff, a lot of ideas and we kind of can focus on certain ones and he's just easy to work with for me and the way I like to work.
Speaker C:This one we did actually in Athens.
Speaker C:We wound up mixing a little bit over at his place in Nashville, but we recorded it here At a studio called Chase Park.
Speaker C:Had a lot of good records come out.
Speaker C:I was expecting my daughter essentially any day, so we kind of had to.
Speaker C:Had to record it here.
Speaker C:Proximity.
Speaker B:Congratulations.
Speaker C:Thanks.
Speaker C:I've done a little bit of touring since she came.
Speaker C:You know, even that had to slow down a good bit.
Speaker C:You know, shoot out and do a few and come home.
Speaker C:Nothing too extensive.
Speaker C:There's a lot of dates, but it's.
Speaker C:You know, they're not all just back to back, three months at a time or whatever like I used to do.
Speaker B:With so many different projects going on, how do you filter songs?
Speaker C:Usually I just kind of know right off the bat.
Speaker C:It just has the feel of where it should wind up.
Speaker C:Every once in a while, they'll cross paths, but for the most part, it's all in my head.
Speaker C:I don't really know how to explain it, but I can just kind of tell where it needs to wind up.
Speaker B:We were saying originally there's some changes.
Speaker A:From the sound of audition tapes to.
Speaker B:This record with Drowning on a Mountaintop.
Speaker B:And it's not just instrumentation.
Speaker B:How do those come about for you?
Speaker B:You kind of hinted that perhaps they developed a bit with Adam Landry.
Speaker C:We had done.
Speaker C:When we did the first Diamond Ruggs record, there was a song called Country Mile that kind of had this heavier verse, kind of stone and rock verse, and then it veered off, and the chorus was country.
Speaker C:I called it the country part.
Speaker C:And then there was another song called Share the Needle on audition tapes that kind of had that same push and pull between the verse and chorus.
Speaker C:And Adam and I were just.
Speaker C:We were talking after.
Speaker C:After a show one night.
Speaker C:We were kind of like, what do a whole record that's like that, you know, that has that.
Speaker C:That kind of push and pull throughout it and kind of really exploit that idea.
Speaker C:Because a lot of people seemed really drawn to those songs.
Speaker C:You know, they didn't seem as crazy to me, but other people were like, oh, that's crazy how that happened, you know, And I was like, oh, well, people seem to like that.
Speaker C:Let's just try to go for it.
Speaker C:So, yeah, just kind of went with that idea.
Speaker C:I mean, we don't.
Speaker C:It's not.
Speaker C:Doesn't happen on.
Speaker C:On every single song.
Speaker C:And we didn't try to force it.
Speaker C:It kind of works for the way I write the stuff I like and for my vibe.
Speaker C:I think it worked out pretty good.
Speaker A:Hey, y'.
Speaker C:All.
Speaker A:This is Sloan Spencer, the host of Country Fried Rock.
Speaker A:We've had an incredible year with more people finding us on the radio.
Speaker A:And our podcast than we ever imagined.
Speaker A:Thank you all so much.
Speaker A:Careful what you wish for.
Speaker A:You just might like to send a big thank you to our Country Fried Rock listeners for supporting Country Fried Rock alum Alan Thompson, who is recovering from a diving accident.
Speaker A:If you'd like to donate Every Dollar Matters and it goes directly to helping defray his bills, you can find that link on Country Fried Rock's Facebook or Twitter.
Speaker A:It's a you caring donation page.
Speaker A:Keep your ears peeled for a few different benefit shows in the Nashville area for Alan Thompson.
Speaker B:We love you, man.
Speaker A:Get better soon.
Speaker C:Hey, this is Pete Hardy Morris on Country Frad Rock.
Speaker B:You can listen to this record and miss some of what you're saying, and then you hear it, like the third or fourth time, you're like, holy cow.
Speaker A:That'S a great line.
Speaker B:A lyrical versus music contrast as well.
Speaker C:Lyrically, the album, a lot of it is.
Speaker C:I don't know, I write a lot of stuff pretty quickly when I'm writing the lyrics.
Speaker C:So a lot of times I don't even.
Speaker C:I don't know exactly what I said until after I hear it back, and I'm like, oh, that was kind of pointed or whatnot.
Speaker C:But yeah, and especially that.
Speaker C:That stuff happened.
Speaker C:That album happened kind of fast, the writing of it, because I went in with a lot of ideas lyrically.
Speaker C:Yeah.
Speaker C:Song by song and just kind of finishing them on the fly.
Speaker C:Some of them were.
Speaker B:They always fleshed out before you got into Chase Park.
Speaker C:Pretty close.
Speaker C:I mean, I was still writing some lyrics as we got into Chase park, but I think that's fine.
Speaker C:That that works for me.
Speaker C:Just kind of the way my brain is.
Speaker C:I've always been a little add, so I don't know.
Speaker C:And sometimes.
Speaker C:And I don't think that a lot of those lines you're speaking of or I'm talking about would really come about.
Speaker C:If I sat down alone with my pen and, you know, tried to labor over it.
Speaker C:It might sound a little labored or might sound a little dramatic.
Speaker C:You just speak what's on your mind.
Speaker C:Sometimes it makes more sense.
Speaker B:Was there some time between completion and release?
Speaker C:Yeah, there was.
Speaker C:There was a little bit, I guess.
Speaker C:We were done recording a year ago, and then we spent a little bit of time mixing it kind of sat for a little bit while the baby was born, and then I was home doing that whole thing, learning how to change diapers and all that stuff.
Speaker C:And then we got around to mixing, and that even took a little bit longer because we wound up going back over to Adams and doing a couple things just because we had to mix it so fast.
Speaker C:Everybody just was busy.
Speaker C:We mixed it and then we had a couple more things we wanted to do, so we fixed those over in Nashville and then finally done.
Speaker B:Who else else was able to help.
Speaker A:You fill out the sound you wanted?
Speaker C:Vaughn Lamb is who plays bass on the record and plays bass in the Hard Knocks.
Speaker C:He's a local Athens bass player.
Speaker C:He's played with, you know, a lot of bands around here, but I just like his style and vibes.
Speaker C:He's kind of got this noodley hippie punk thing going on that I like.
Speaker C:Kind of fits what we're doing.
Speaker A:Hey y', all, this is Sloane Spencer, the host of Country Fried Rock.
Speaker A:Those of y' all who listen on our podcasts, it's a quick hit of just the conversation.
Speaker A:If you want the full radio program with all the songs that we talk about, ask for it on your local radio station, joining 20 other stations across the country.
Speaker A:Get the goods@country friedrock.org hey y', all, Country Fried Rock has a few cool new things going on that we've been teasing for a while.
Speaker A:Pop on by countryfriedrock.com scroll down on the right hand side of the screen or just keep on scrolling if you're on mobile.
Speaker A:Down at the bottom, we're doing a quick listener survey.
Speaker A: ' all want as we plan now for: Speaker A:I know it seems so far away, but actually we've already got a very cool thing up our sleeves that will be happening while I'm in Nashville next month.
Speaker B:So.
Speaker A:Looking forward to that.
Speaker A:Speaking of which, lots of Country Fried Rock alums are going to be playing Americana Fest in September and we'll be hanging out that week.
Speaker A:Come on by and say hello.
Speaker C:Hey, this is T. Hardy Morris.
Speaker C:Get more info at T.
Speaker B:What kind of stuff was speaking to you?
Speaker B:Because there's, you can hear a lot of different things going on in the different songs on this record.
Speaker A:Specifically.
Speaker B:I got a little Nirvana on some of it.
Speaker C:Oh yeah, that was one of the things I was trying to convey with the record is, you know, you don't really think of, of like country music or, or Southern rock and grunge really sitting hand in hand.
Speaker C:But to me, they're, they're not that really that far off.
Speaker C:They're both kind of come from a rural sounding place to me.
Speaker C:You know, I don't know, just sounds like what I, that's what I grew up on.
Speaker C:But I think they're a little Closer fit than a lot of people give them credit for.
Speaker C:Especially like southern rock and grunge music.
Speaker C:What the real early versions of grunge music, you know, those are.
Speaker C:A lot of those bands were from out in the middle of nowhere, you know, kind of coming up with these ideas in the garage and southern rock with, you know, just these wood shedding out in the middle of nowhere in the.
Speaker C:In the South.
Speaker C:I don't know, they're just both kind of rural.
Speaker C:So I thought that the pedal steel and that country sound works a little better than you might think with the heavy handed side of grunge.
Speaker C:Yeah, the Meat Puppets kind of.
Speaker C:Kind of did that.
Speaker C:They always had had a country vibe going on, kind of country punk.
Speaker C:So there's definitely.
Speaker C:And I've.
Speaker C:I've toured with those guys before and we've talked music a good bit.
Speaker C:They're kind of buddies and I mean it's a little.
Speaker C:A lot of the albums are a little more heavy handed than Meat Puppets.
Speaker C:But I kind of.
Speaker C:They're often a band that I kind of have a touchstone in the studio that I kind of.
Speaker C:When I hear Becca's song, I'm like, I wonder if Kurt and Chris would like this song.
Speaker C:I'm like, yeah, I think they would.
Speaker B:There's a particular song I want to ask about.
Speaker B:Who is the other voice on?
Speaker A:It's either quiet or quieter.
Speaker C:That's Justin.
Speaker C:Who?
Speaker C:Justin Collins, who's was the other producer on the record.
Speaker C:Justin co produces a lot of stuff with Adam.
Speaker C:He did audition tapes and the Diamond Rug stuff.
Speaker C:He's also a musician, singer, songwriter over in Nashville.
Speaker C:His stuff's awesome.
Speaker C:It's really good.
Speaker B:How have some of those relationships come around for who you get to go on tour with?
Speaker C:Well, you know, I've known the Drive By Trucker guys for a long time.
Speaker C:From Day Confederate touring with them.
Speaker C:They took us to the west coast.
Speaker C:The first time we ever toured on the west coast.
Speaker C:We just always have kept in touch.
Speaker C:Patterson and I specifically.
Speaker C:He's been kind of a good proponent of my stuff, solo stuff and decofederate and so yeah, it's just.
Speaker C:I don't know, I feel like we're the band that when they just have to go do some one off shows, they're always like, hey, you want to come play?
Speaker C:That's just local connection.
Speaker C:You know, they.
Speaker C:They live here and then the stuff I'm doing with Delta Sphere, we're only doing a couple shows, but I'm doing some stuff out with them.
Speaker C:They're doing a tour where they're bringing, like, buddies on stage with them to do, like, a handful of songs.
Speaker A:Fun.
Speaker C:And I'm doing a couple of those shows with Delta Spirit, which I think also, like, Ian o' Neill from Deer Tick, and some folks are doing it as well.
Speaker C:But I just know Matt kind of through the Deer Tick guys.
Speaker C:I met him over in Nashville at Adult Spirit show that I had gone to with with John and Robbie Deer Tick.
Speaker C:And then he actually came in and played Keys and Fang on a song on audition tapes Matt did.
Speaker C:So we kind of hit it off through that and then emailed me a while back and was like, you want to do these Delta Spirit shows?
Speaker C:Want to do that for fun and camaraderie?
Speaker A:I'm your host, Sloane Spencer.
Speaker A:You can keep in touch with us on Facebook.
Speaker A:But I really like Twitter, where We are at CountryFriedRock, ending with R O K. And if you want to see pictures of my shoes, my dog, and my lunch, stop by Instagram.
Speaker A:But whatever way you like to hang out, stop by and say hey.
Speaker A:Oh, yeah.
Speaker A:I'm so excited to tell y' all about this.
Speaker A:A while back, I mentioned we were gonna have a new way for bands to submit to this program.
Speaker A:It's been a great problem to have, but I've been getting so much email, I can't even get to the critical things.
Speaker A:So for several weeks, we're gonna be working with Reverb Nation on a special submission page that's called a Country Fried Rock opportunity.
Speaker A:To make it easy for you, I put a direct link on countryfriedrock.com all you need to do is click on the category that says contact.
Speaker A:And then when it says four musicians, you'll have the direct link to the Reverb Nation page.
Speaker A:The coolest part is a lot of y' all are truly emerging bands working on your very first recordings.
Speaker A:Completely out of the loop of our circle of friends, and we love it.
Speaker A:Thank you so much to all of y' all who have found us in this one short week.
Speaker A:We've been doing it.
Speaker A:Looking forward to a ton more great music and featuring these bands soon.
Speaker C:Hey, this is T. Hardy Morris.
Speaker C:You can find my new album, Drowning on a Mountaintop, anywhere great records are sold.
Speaker B:Speaking of which, you have some other opportunities to make music with some friends in different ways.
Speaker B:How are those things going for you?
Speaker C:New connections and music?
Speaker C:Kind of.
Speaker C:They get me excited.
Speaker C:Not that other stuff gets, like, old or boring.
Speaker C:It's just.
Speaker C:I don't know, I just like the adventure of meeting new people and hearing what they bring to the table and different sounds.
Speaker C:And I kind of know where I'm gonna go, so it's nice to know we're gonna go with it, you know.
Speaker B:Is Dead Confederate on permanent hiatus?
Speaker C:No, we're planning to record again soon.
Speaker C:You know, we hang out all the time here in town.
Speaker C:We just played a show at the George Theater, which was great.
Speaker B:Oh, cool.
Speaker C:Yeah.
Speaker C:And so we're always together, and we're just trying to find the right time to record, you know, everybody stays pretty busy, and of course, I wind up staying busier than I actually think I am, just trying to find the right time to do it, but it'll happen.
Speaker A:How did Danger Bird Records come around?
Speaker C:That's actually a Dead Confederate connection there.
Speaker C: ad Confederate back in, like,: Speaker C:She was just a fan of the band and what we did, and we worked pretty closely together.
Speaker C:You know, she was doing, like, radio and college radio stuff, you know, driving us around to different stations, and we just kind of hit it off as far as our taste and music.
Speaker C:And she was just a big, big help to us for a really long time.
Speaker C:And then she moved on and was.
Speaker C:And was doing stuff at Danger Bird and then wound up in the driver's seat over there at some point and kind of came to Austin.
Speaker C:She came to a couple of Diamond Rug shows, and we got to talking about new label.
Speaker C:She was doing stuff with and asking about my solo stuff, and we decided to go into Biv.
Speaker B:What other exciting stuff do y' all have on deck?
Speaker C:You know, I don't know.
Speaker C:It just came out.
Speaker C:So I'm just at home writing and recording a little bit of my own stuff, just seeing where it winds up, you know, we'll see how the shows go, you know, see if people show up and, you know, if they're excited about it or what.
Speaker C:I don't know.
Speaker C:These days it's so crazy.
Speaker C:You don't know how many people are going to hear it or not.
Speaker C:You know, every day is just this giant tidal wave of information and music on.
Speaker C:On the Internet, where you're like, I don't know, is it floating in the wave or is it getting washed over?
Speaker C:Who knows?
Speaker C:So we'll just see if it floats and then do the shows.
Speaker C:And, you know, hopefully people dig it, but I don't know where I'll go next.
Speaker C:Sonically, I really like what we did, but also don't, you know, you don't want to do the same thing twice.
Speaker C:We kind of rode that pony.
Speaker C:We'll see where it goes next.
Speaker C:But I'm writing a lot, figuring out what I'm going to do.
Speaker C:I write a good bit, you know, I sit down with the guitar a good bit.
Speaker C:So, yeah, I mean, I think the better stuff might come in waves, but there's always something there.
Speaker B:Is this album available on vinyl?
Speaker C:Yes.
Speaker B:Ooh.
Speaker B:Tell me a little bit about that.
Speaker C:Well, you know, had all the artwork going and I don't know, I just proposed to Jenny and the label, can we do this on white vinyl?
Speaker C:But that absolutely came about.
Speaker B:Tell me a little bit about the artwork.
Speaker C:It was a mock up idea that I had drawn up.
Speaker C:I had kind of done a takeoff of a Leon Russell album cover for an album of his called Hank Wilson's Back.
Speaker C:I did a mock up of it and then my friend Carl, his daughter, sewed it together to fetch their sewn.
Speaker C:Wow.
Speaker C:Pretty cool.
Speaker B:Yeah, that's really cool.
Speaker C:Yeah.
Speaker B:Oh, I can't even remember the last time we had a sewn album cover.
Speaker B:That's incredible.
Speaker C:Yeah, she did it.
Speaker C:She's like 16.
Speaker B:That's amazing.
Speaker C:Yeah, I had done a mock up of it and it was like done.
Speaker C:We were about to go to the presses with it and have it all, all go.
Speaker C:And then Carl emailed, was like, hold on, call off the dogs.
Speaker C:Emma, his daughter, she's like, she actually sewed it last night, sent it over and we were like, oh, well, there you go.
Speaker C:That's the one.
Speaker C:The hand done.
Speaker B:That's amazing.
Speaker C:Yeah.
Speaker B:What a great story.
Speaker B:Well, very cool.
Speaker B:Well, T. Hardy Morris, thank you so much for being with us on Country Fried Rock.
Speaker C:Yeah, no problem.
Speaker C:Thank you.
Speaker B:Safe travels.
Speaker B:Bye bye.
Speaker C:All right.
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