Next month there is a show happening in Lexington, Kentucky that you will not want to miss and you can bet that I, for one, won’t be missing it. The lineup for the third annual Lexington Hayride was announced last week and it is set to feature a slew of roots music and XXX heavyweights including Fifth on the Floor, Rachel Brooke, Joey Allcorn and Killer Meteor.
I plan to attend this show for a variety of reasons, not the least of which being that I love three of the four artists playing and am completely unfamiliar with the fourth. Rachel Brooke is one of the defining voices of the underground country scene, seamlessly melding a dark worldview and traditional sensibilities to create some of the best music being made today. Joey Allcorn is one of that rare breed of individuals who can carry on the traditional country sounds of the ’50s without sounding like a nostalgia act. As I’ve stated elsewhere, Fifth on the Floor are one of my favorite bands out there right now, incorporating Southern rock and roots music into an original sound that is rough and real. I’ve not heard Killer Meteor, but what I’ve heard about them has me intrigued.
But another reason I feel that shows like this are important is that they give a voice to an audience that is fed up with the establishment, be it Music Row, rock radio, the clowns who make up the rap game these days, or even the more established folk and Americana outlets. These are artists who, for the most part, get very little support outside of underground websites and blogs and podcasts such as those found on the Outlaw Radio network or Saving Country Music Live. It is the artists who believe in what they’re doing and the fans who support them that keep this type of music going and how better to show promoters and venues that we want more events like this than to show up and let our voices be heard?
I recently spoke to Justin Wells, who is the lead singer of Fifth on the Floor as well as the organizer of the Lexington Hayride, about the show, the sense of community found in this music, as well as the future of his band.
AS: First off, can you give me an overview of what’s going down at the Hayride, as well as when and where?
JW: Well, the Hayride, ironically, is somethin’ I started- this is the third one, three years runnin’- and it’s somethin’ I started much along the lines of what you and Shooter [Jennings] are doin’ with the XXX thing. Just a unifying thing, that’s it, just puttin’ the focus on roots music, bluegrass, country, Southern rock, XXX, Americana, whatever you wanna call it, but it bein’ more about camaraderie and creatin’ a network and tradin’ fans. I didn’t see a lot of that goin’ on in Lexington and, moreover, in the region. It was just my little effort to try to do that. This year it’s October 1st at Cosmic Charlie’s, which is the old club that had a lot of great artists back in the day- Hank3, Rick Danko played there right before he died, just a lot of great bands. It’s just a really cool room, great sound. Rachel’s gonna start off the night and then Killer Meteor, a local band that are really good. Joey Allcorn’s playin’ third and then we close out the night. It’s gonna be rowdy and it’s gonna be fun.
AS: Yeah, I’ve noticed a lot of the XXX artists on there. How did you go about getting those folks involved and what do you think is the importance of having them on the bill?
JW: Well, I met Joey when we did the “Outlaw You” video and obviously talked to him quite a bit. And
