THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Thanks to his metal- and classic rock-loving dad, Austin Meade got to see bands like Judas Priest and worshipped Whitesnake. In junior high he related to the intense emo-rock of Paramore and Fall Out Boy, and the power of songwriters like John Mayer. Yet, thanks to plainspoken but deep heartland songwriters like Tom Petty, and cutting his teeth touring in the Texas and Oklahoma Red Dirt scene, Meade’s music overflows with wide-open soulfulness.
He was a drummer for years, even teaching to pay the bills, but Meade found his true voice when he began playing guitar as a teen in his pastor-father’s church. Those experiences lend both a gravitas and rebelliousness to Meade’s songs and self. Austin Meade’s songs and stories are contradictory yet cohesive. His new album Black Sheep, his influences — musical and otherwise— are as varied and rich as the small-town Texas soil that nurtured his talent and yielded these 12 stellar songs, wihch range from multi-layered musicality and storytelling to dark alt-pop, new age and Black Sabbath-inspired rock.”
