Nashville-based Americana singer-songwriter Derek Hoke is prepping for the release of his new album, Bring the Flood (due 10/13), a ten-track collection that hones in on themes of loss, doom, and struggle, and finds Hoke collaborating with artists such as Elizabeth Cook, Aaron Lee Tasjan, Langhorne Slim, Matt Chamberlain, and Luther Dickinson.
No Depression is pleased to premiere the album’s closing track, “Heavy Weather.” A weighty and ominous, gospel-tinged rocker that builds like an incoming storm, “Heavy Weather” – led by Hoke’s vivid lyrics, keys, and bluesy guitar riffs – deals with confronting your troubles before slowly fading out, ushering those difficulties right along with it.
Hoke had this to say about the track, “‘Heavy Weather’ was initially a simple piano blues number. I kept playing a weird, backward guitar part over it and wanted it to be more up tempo. Producer Dex Green had Matt Chamberlain (Tori Amos, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, Saturday Night Live Band, Garbage) play drums on it. My only direction for Matt was “Ringo Starr falling down the stairs” (he knew what I meant). So the simple piano blues tune evolved into a dark, Beatlesque rocker.
The song is about confronting your troubles. Addressing the dark clouds overhead. Musically it just builds and builds. It grabs you and doesn’t let go. I knew I wanted it to be the last track on the record and have a long fade out. We had our friend Laura Mayo sing with me on it. She puts the soul into the song.
Dex and I spent a lot of time twisting little knobs on guitar pedals and echo machines to get the sounds we wanted. Making things sound like they were broken and spiraling out of control. I think we got there. ”
