9508 - A THOUSAND HORSES - SOUTHERNALITY (2015)

A THOUSAND HORSES
''SOUTHERNALITY''
JUNE 9 2015
45:26

1 First Time 04:35
2 Heaven Is Close 03:54
3 Smoke 03:38
4 Travelin' Man 03:57
5 Tennessee Whiskey 03:20
6 Sunday Morning 03:31
7 Southernality 02:26
8 (This Ain’t No) Drunk Dial 03:28
9 Landslide 03:18
10 Back To Me 03:23
11 Trailer Trashed 02:42
12 Hell On My Heart 03:39
13 Where I’m Going 03:27

Michael Hobby/Lead Vocals
Bill Satcher/Lead Guitar
Zach Brown/Guitar, Vocals
Graham Deloach/Bass Guitar, Vocals

REVIEW
by Thom Jurek
Southernality is the hotly anticipated debut album from South Carolina's A Thousand Horses. The pre-release single "Smoke" made a long, steady run up various airplay charts to finally hit the top spot, an anomaly for a debuting artist. Produced by Dave Cobb, this 13-song set offers a smoother side of the group's fiery live persona that weds Southern rock to vintage Rolling Stones and Black Crowes and stomping honky tonk. Southernality is intentionally tempered by modern country's pop tropes. And there's no foul there. It's refreshing, actually. The band's core is frontman Michael Hobby, lead guitarist Bill Satcher, rhythm guitarist/backing vocalist Zach Brown, and bassist/backing vocalist Graham DeLoach. They are fleshed out on-stage by five more pieces, including the excellent female vocal trio of Kristen Rogers, Whitney Coleman, and Brianne Angarole, and here by more studio players. The opening chords of "First Time" recall the Stones' intro to "Street Fighting Man" before cranking into a bluesy rave-up. "Heaven Is Close" begins as a simple love song with banjo, fiddle, and acoustic guitars offering a back-porch feel, but power chords, a fat snare and thudding kick drum, and gospelized female harmonies turn it into a Southern rocker. These cuts contrast sharply with the hooky, string-swept, lushly illustrated country-pop of "Smoke," whose metaphor equates unhealthy romantic obsession and tobacco addiction. "Sunday Morning," co-written with Rich Robinson, is a blustery love song with a crying slide and sweeping gospel overtones that make it a rock & roll hymn. Second single "(This Ain't No) Drunk Dial" is spirited pop-country with a distinct melodic hook and soaring, singalong refrain. "Tennessee Whiskey" pretty much follows suit. "Travelin' Man" is a thoroughly revisioned take of the song that appeared on A Thousand Horses' eponymously titled EP in 2010. "Landslide" pastes crunchy hard rock onto Southern R&B. "Back to Me," a thoroughly polished midtempo ballad, is the album's outlier. Unfortunately, it's followed by "Trailer Trashed," an all too familiar swaggering party jam marred by handclaps so massively compressed that they sound like drum loops. With its kaleidoscopic hook, expertly crafted crescendos, and a startling, in-the-round gospel backing chorus, "Hell on My Heart" could easily be another single. Though it might contain an excess track or two, Southernality is a fine debut. This band has been carefully molded for chart success without sacrificing its identity -- or revealing it fully, either. This album, as thoroughly enjoyable as it is, tells only part of the story. A Thousand Horses need to be witnessed live to be fully appreciated. It will be interesting to see what direction they take in the future and if that aspect of their persona is revealed on their records. For now, Southernality delivers on the band's modern country promise and warrants repeated listening.

BIOGRAPHY/AMG
by James Christopher Monger
A rootsy and road-tested Southern rock ensemble with both bar band swagger and country-pop smarts, Nashville, Tennessee's A Thousand Horses specialize in a blend of hard-hitting classic rock, modern country, and highway-ready Americana, falling somewhere between The Black Crowes, Florida Georgia Line, and Lynyrd Skynyrd. The culmination of the musical pursuits of longtime friends and Newberry, South Carolina natives Michael Hobby (lead vocals, harmonica) and Bill Satcher (lead guitar), who had been making music together since they were 15, the band, which also features the talents of Graham DeLoach (bass, vocals) and Zack Brown (guitar, vocals), released an eponymous debut EP in 2010.

The led to the group inking a deal with Big Machine Records/Republic Nashville in 2014. Their first single for the label, "(This Ain't No) Drunk Dial," was a Top 20 hit. It was followed by the Top Ten-charting "Smoke" in the spring of 2015. Southernality, A Thousand Horses' full-length album was released in June in the midst of a North American Tour.

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7278 - A THOUSAND HORSES - The Landslide (EP) (2012)

A THOUSAND HORSES
''THE LANDSLIDE'' EP
MAY 15 2012
21:42

1 /Landslide 3:18
2 /Whats Happening to Me 4:23
3 /Tennessee Whiskey 3:35
4 /Love or Money 3:22
5 /Feels Like Rock 'n' Roll 3:47
6 /Drunk Dial (Bonus Track) 3:24

Michael Hobby-Lead Vocal
Bill Satcher-Lead Guitar
Zach Brown-Guitar and Vocal
Graham Deloach-Bass and Vocal
Jonathan Carman-The Drums

OFFICIAL BIOGRAPHY
Nashville based band A Thousand Horses is a blues and booze infused cocktail of southern rock and country. With lyrics that pay homage to the traditional values of the fly over states, they blend a blue collar mentality with modern southern rock. They are comprised of front man Michael Hobby, Graham Deloach on bass, Bill Satcher and Zach Brown on guitars and Jonathan Carman on Drums.
A Thousand Horses released their debut self-titled EP in 2010 with the stand out tracks “Travelin’ Man” and “Suicide Eyes”. The latter of which was featured in the 2011 remake of the 80′s classic “Footloose”. The year 2012 brought the Landslide EP, which built upon the solid foundation of their unobtrusive, classic sound. With tracks ranging from the effortlessly laid back to the loud and infectious, this release showcased the band’s creative diversity. The EP features the Southern rock anthem “Tennessee Whiskey”, where the band encapsulates the traditional windows–down summer vibrato that makes any beer run or porch hang happen. They have since shared the stage with artists such as Kip Moore, Blackberry Smoke, and Darius Rucker as well as taking part in the last two Simple Man Cruises hosted by Sixthman and Lynyrd Skynyrd. They are to be listened to loud and preferably with a drink in hand. A Thousand Horses celebrate the revival of roots rock with their own country flavor.
One can make musical comparisons, but a live show is where you hear and feel the harmonious energy that the only the chemistry of steady drums, electric guitars and earnest, distinct vocals can produce. Whether they’re singing about getting “Trailer Trashed” or reveling in the freedom of losing yourself in “Heaven Is Close”, A Thousand Horses is a band that knows how to excite a crowd with their high energy hybrid of rock and country. There are no gimmicks or pretensions here, just four guys whose affinity for music and a rough and tumble crowd make for Country ‘N’ Roll done right.

7277 - A THOUSAND HORSES (EP) (2010)

A THOUSAND HORSES
''A THOUSAND HORSES''
AUGUST 17 2010
16:11

1 /Suicide Eyes 3:10
2 /Travelin' Man 3:39
3 /A Thousand Horses 3:34
4 /Kiss Your Photograph 2:32
5 /Heart Attack 3:16

Michael Hobby-Lead Vocal
Bill Satcher-Lead Guitar
Zach Brown-Guitar and Vocal
Graham Deloach-Bass and Vocal
Jonathan Carman-The Drums

OFFICIAL BIOGRAPHY
Nashville based band A Thousand Horses is a blues and booze infused cocktail of southern rock and country. With lyrics that pay homage to the traditional values of the fly over states, they blend a blue collar mentality with modern southern rock. They are comprised of front man Michael Hobby, Graham Deloach on bass, Bill Satcher and Zach Brown on guitars and Jonathan Carman on Drums.
A Thousand Horses released their debut self-titled EP in 2010 with the stand out tracks “Travelin’ Man” and “Suicide Eyes”. The latter of which was featured in the 2011 remake of the 80′s classic “Footloose”. The year 2012 brought the Landslide EP, which built upon the solid foundation of their unobtrusive, classic sound. With tracks ranging from the effortlessly laid back to the loud and infectious, this release showcased the band’s creative diversity. The EP features the Southern rock anthem “Tennessee Whiskey”, where the band encapsulates the traditional windows–down summer vibrato that makes any beer run or porch hang happen. They have since shared the stage with artists such as Kip Moore, Blackberry Smoke, and Darius Rucker as well as taking part in the last two Simple Man Cruises hosted by Sixthman and Lynyrd Skynyrd. They are to be listened to loud and preferably with a drink in hand. A Thousand Horses celebrate the revival of roots rock with their own country flavor.
One can make musical comparisons, but a live show is where you hear and feel the harmonious energy that the only the chemistry of steady drums, electric guitars and earnest, distinct vocals can produce. Whether they’re singing about getting “Trailer Trashed” or reveling in the freedom of losing yourself in “Heaven Is Close”, A Thousand Horses is a band that knows how to excite a crowd with their high energy hybrid of rock and country. There are no gimmicks or pretensions here, just four guys whose affinity for music and a rough and tumble crowd make for Country ‘N’ Roll done right.