My Year In Review

So…My year in review.

All I can say is WHAT? Seriously this past 4 months with Sound Check has been an absolute amazing experience.

I recall the first time chatting with Hendrik about the blog and saying I was interested in starting my own in late June and in mid July Hendrik asked if I would be interested in covering Boots & Hearts this year for Sound Check. So I talked it over with my wife and she was all for it (very grateful) . So the August long weekend had me pack up the car with a tent, a cooler full of food & a beer or two along with my guitar by my side and off I went not knowing what to expect. It was 4 days of absolutely amazing music but here is the kicker, I was going to interview some of Canada’s best country acts… What? A kid that grew up in a small town (6000 people) nestled on the shores of the Ottawa River was about to interview the likes of Tim Hicks, The Road Hammers, Brett Kissel to name a few.

I can remember sitting in the press tent waiting for my very first interview and the shit that was floating around in my head. I was about to sit down with Brett Kissel on the Gibson tourning bus. Now Brett had the hottest single on the charts with 3-2-1 at the time and I was nervous as hell. It took a good 3 or 4 minutes into the interview before I realized heck I can do this. Questions started to flow a little easier and the conversation was over before I knew it. Not sure if I rushed it a bit but Brett was a true professional and answered the questions with more than a yes or no direct answer. I don’t think Brett had any clue that it was my first ever interview but want to thank him for claiming my interview virginity and taking it easy on me. The weekend continued with chats with The Stables, One More Girl, The Road Hammers & and of course my boy Tim Hicks. It did get easier but I was still anxious during each of the interviews thinking I was going to come off as some crazed fan! Thankfully I don’t think that happened.

So after a weekend of fantastic music and meeting some really amazing people (Josh, Trish and Ray to name a few) I really didn’t know what to expect. Was I really going to get a chance to do more with Hendrik and the blog or was this a one and done scenario. Well as you know it wasn’t a one and done. I continued to work the GTA by attending shows on behalf of Sound Check. A couple of the GTA shows that I covered were Thomas Rhett @ Rockin’ Horse Saloon and Permente Damage aka Miranda Lambert & Band @ Boots & Bourbon. Then came a couple other big festivals like Lucknow Music in the Fields and Havelock Country Jamboree oh did I tell you that was just AUGUST! I have to say that Lucknow on the Saturday was the best lineup of the summer with Lindsay Ell, Brett Kissel, Tim Hicks, The Road Hammers & Dierks Bentley all on the same stage. This little event is truly a gem with no more than 12,000 in attendence. If your in Southern Ontario and need your country fix this summer and don’t want to fight off the 40,000+ at Boots & Hearts, Lucknow is the spot. Great view and still family friendly. (Oh and if you like kids being cute you have to check out my YouTube Video of my son dancing around playing some Tim Hicks with the crowd https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1NIyUYAL6ow)

The last couple months I have had the opportunity to chat with High Valley, Kira Isabella & Dallas Smith to name a few. Sitting down with Dallas Smith one of Canada’s best exports in music at a coffee shop downtown Toronto was a pretty cool experience but I do have to say it was the Bands on the Run Tour that had me acting like a kid in a candy store. Being a big Blackjack Billy & Road Hammers fan I knew it was going to be the tour NOT to miss this Fall. Don’t get me wrong the Riser Tour with Dierks Bentley, Randy Houser & Tim Hicks show was out of this world. But to be able to sit down and talk with Rob Blackledge, Brad Cummings, Noll Billings & the Magic Man Jeff Coplan (I just coined that cause the guys in the interview say he is a Wizard in the studio and is one hell of a producer) of Blackjack Billy was a riot. I am sure I was just another interview to them but to me it was one of those experiences you will never forget. The laughs and the fun we had was not what I was expecting from the guys seeing how all my past interviews went. Now I was lucky enough to attend the Guelph BOTR show in which Tim Hicks showed up so I sure as hell can’t complain it was an absolutley AMAZING Show . I think I may have said it was like Porn for your ears it was that good! As the year winds down I reflect on how lucky I am and how greatful I am to Hendrik for giving me a shot at something I could never of even dreamed about.

I can tell you that I am a huge George Stroumboulopoulos fan and since his days on 102.1 The Edge in Toronto and his interviewing knowledge of the artist he is talking with has always intrigued me how the artist reacts to some of George’s questions. I have tried to take from Strombo in that asking the generic question really doesn’t keep a conversation flowing its the unexpected. It’s when you hit that ONE question that all others will fall in place and takes it from an interview to a convestation. I truely am having the time of my life.

I have an amazing family that has supported this new chapter of my life. I do stil have a day job that pays the bills but having this creative outlet has brought new dreams. I have no clue where this road will take me but want to thank all that have spent time reading what I have typed out on these pages. I also want to thank those at the record labels (Sony, Universal, Warner and Open Road Records for allowing me into your world. I may not have the perfect grammer or a pristine spell checked article but I can tell you its 100% me. I tell it like I see it. Some may not agree but this is a fan perspective.

I am looking forward to 2015 and what it has in store. Thanks for reading and have a happy holiday season!

Ok someone pinch me now.. Cause I gotta be dreaming!

Corey Kelly / @CoreyKelly76