Marina Rocks invites you along for a groovy Joy Ride on her infectious and uplifting new single and video — showcasing today on Tinnitist.
The emotional heartbeat of the Texas singer-songwriter and guitar slinger’s fourth album Austin to Houston, Joy Ride offers a life-affirming encapsulation of the sweet, simple pleasure that comes from a freewheeling journey. Accompanied by a home-made feel-good video, it appeals to fans of Paul Simon’s Graceland — and anyone who enjoyed watched a happy-go-lucky guy ride a skateboard while drinking cranberry juice and listening to Fleetwood Mac. In short: It’s a good thing in a small package — much like Marina Rocks, a pint-size blonde whose talent and heart are the size of her home state.
Born during an Austin heat wave, she played her first guitar till her little-kid fingers bled. Then she played it some more. When she turned 12, her mom bought her a Marshall stack instead of a party dress and the rest is history. From 2005-2015, Marina led the Houston power trio The Guppies, playing major venues with rock royalty such as Aerosmith, Jethro Tull, Kansas, Deep Purple and Joe Satriani. Since going solo, Marina has opened for Terri Hendrix and Lloyd Maines, Joe Ely, Hayes Carll, Shake Russell and Jesse Dayton, to name a few.
When Marina lost her mom to breast cancer in 2018, she channeled her grief into action, building a home studio she dubbed Two-Fisted Pixie and crafting Austin to Houston, the next chapter of her next musical journey. True to its title, the Texas-centric album is partly a reflection on her journey from her native Austin to her adopted home. The compositions featured epic storytelling delivered with unwavering conviction and fire-in-the-belly ferocity. The uptempo selections deal with social issues. The ballads are hidden treasures. There’s even an affecting cover of Nothin’, the Townes Van Zandt classic.
In addition to engineering and producing the recording, Marina sang all the parts and played almost all the instruments. The exceptions: Grammy-winning Austin Music Hall of Fame inductee Lloyd Maines plays pedal steel on Shine. Fellow Texans Aden Buebeck and Alex Rodriguez added some bass, with Pat Manske adding percussion (though Marina played all the main drum tracks). Manske also mixed and mastered the album with additional mastering by Nick Landis.
Watch Joy Ride, sample more tunes from Marina Rocks below, and ride shotgun at her website, Facebook and Instagram.
