BY ALISON DEWAR
Photo credit Alison Dewar
“It’s taken a minute…that’s for sure”
Chatting to Kyle Daniel is a like a breath of fresh air. His sheer enthusiasm for his craft is unbridled, but it comes with an honesty that talks of the need for patience as the latest parts of the puzzle career finally come together.
July 19 marks the release date for his long-awaited debut full-length album Kentucky Gold – a project that stretches back to at least the beginning of this decade – and which is now seeing the light of day thanks to Kyle signing on the dotted line with Snakefarm.
It’s an album of contrasts – rock anthems like Summer Down South (featuring The Cadillac Three) capture the essence of summertime, while Following the Rain and Runnin’ From Me bring a more insightful and autobiographical element.
Kyle co-wrote all 12 tracks, collaborating with producers such as The Cadillac Three’s Jaren Johnston, The Lone Bellow’s Brian Elmquist, and songwriter/multi-instrumentalist Mike Krompass.
“It’s taken a minute, that’s for sure, but I’m so excited that we’re finally releasing music and getting it all out there, it feels like the culmination of a lifelong dream,” says Kyle.
I asked if Snakefarm had been on his hit list of labels to get signed with: “Not necessarily, I don’t think it was something I was really thinking to myself, like ‘oh man, this is it, these are the guys…’.
“It’s not that they weren’t on my radar for a reason, no-one was on my radar at all because my expectation level was so low about what was possible. I’ve tried to keep that in check because, to start dreaming about things and let that get away from you, can, like ruin the experience… you write songs, you record them and you hope that they resonate with people and garner some attention. I think I’ve learned to not have expectations in this business.
“Usually, you get an agent or a manager, then a couple more people come on board, and the last piece of the puzzle is the record deal. For me, it was kind of backwards, I got the record deal first, so I was very patient with this process and took my time in putting together the right team.
“Now I feel really good about everybody and the more I have started to understand about Snakfarm – the artists and bands they are connected to are such an eclectic variety – that lends itself to opportunities for me as one of those artists who’s not necessarily pigeonholed to one genre.”
The conversation leads neatly on to the variety of tracks on the album, giving both a strong nod to both his love of Blues – he names Albert King as one of his biggest influences – as well as his much-revered The Allman Brothers Band.
“I think there’s so many layers as to who I am as an individual, an artist, a friend, a family member, I didn’t want to put a stake in one thing and feed one lane,” he says. “I started out playing Blues, so songs like A Man Like That, showcase my early Blues influence, then the obvious Southern Rock nods were songs like Me & My Old Man with the altro that’s a tip of the hat to the Allman Brothers.
“Then there’s the more serious, kind of cut-your-heart-out songs like Following the Rain and real-life issues in Divided We Are, those are a nod to singer/songwriters like Ray LaMontagne and John Moreland.”
Divided We Fall was co-written by Kyle and Adam Wright way back in 2020 about what was then an upcoming US election. Now, with Biden and Trump set to come head-to-head again, it is still more than relevant. As Kyle says: “Because of everything that has happened since then, we find ourselves in more of a division and headed back into the firing line of that more than ever.”
He sees the variety of styles and tracks as a way to really showcase who Kyle Daniel is and the influences that have shaped him into the artist he is.
Eight of the 12 tracks survived the cut from the first version of Kentucky Gold which never saw the light of day, and I asked Kyle why new songs were needed.
“We originally cut the bulk of the record in Muscle Shoals in 2020, that was what I took to Snakefarm and what got me signed initially. As we started to dissect the idea of what this would look like, the label brought to my attention that we needed to get some shots, more looks…they said ‘these are great songs, but let’s go for something like this’.”
Step forward one Jaren Johnston. Together they went into the studio to cut Summer Down South (co-written by the pair and featuring The Cadillac Three), alongside Southern Sounds and Fire Me Up.
Kyle then brought in buddies – Maggie Rose, Kendell Marvel and Sarah Zimmerman – to join him on vocals for some of the other tracks.
He continues: “At that point, we felt like that was it, everyone had their compass set on it. Then, at the last minute, we kind of took a Hail Mary shot with the write we did for Can’t Hold Me Back and it came out to be such a barn-burner of a song that it was ‘oh man, this is the lead single’, it makes too much sense not to be.
“After the amount of time after I last released music, it was here – it was the new single.”
As well as signing with Snakefarm, Kyle now has leading global talent stable United Talent Agency (UTA) handling all his bookings, describing them as “phenomenal” and says it’s all about the UK and US teams working together on the different pieces of the puzzle.
Next month sees him back in Europe, kicking off a mini tour as a special guest with Oklahoma country rock band Southall on a series of dates around his return visit to The Long Road Festival.
“I’m coming strong with my band and it’ll be a wild ride,” he says. “These guys know how I operate a show and it’s going to be like a family reunion of sorts.
“The main emphasis for launching Kentucky Gold in the UK is because that’s where my music resonates, so we’re playing to the strong suits of what’s happening for us.”
Talking of how much the UK loves Kyle (and vice versa) top of his future venue wishlist is a return to C2C – he still feels cheated out of his stalled debut in 2020 when (thanks to Covid) everything disappeared in an instant.
He is however, philosophical – “I think there’s some redemption still running through my veins. I’m looking to be at C2C on the main stage with a full band. I think everything happens for a reason and maybe that one reason was that it could, and should have, been bigger – so maybe it will be!”
As anyone who has met Kyle knows, this man can talk for England, but some things you have to save for another time.
So for my final question, I asked if he finally feels all his dreams are coming true?
“I think this is the end goal for every 16-year-old that picks up a guitar and wants to be Jimi Hendrix,” he says.
“To travel and play all over the world, to be a world-renowned musician, to have a record deal…there is so much of that kind of dreamlike stuff that has come to fruition.
“Sometimes it’s tough as an artist. You are conditioned to get to the next thing, to make it better, whether it’s a record or a tour…sometimes, it’s tough to step back and just appreciate what’s happened.
“It’s been nice not to have that hustle and bustle shuffle of touring all the time just to get the name out there. Pre covid, that was the drill – it was play as much as you can, play everywhere you can, and work, work, work, work.
“I think as world we’ve adjusted, the way we receive and buy entertainment is different now, so there’s no need to chase your tail to raise the profile. You can be strategic, and I think a lot of that is attributed to my agent, management, and the label together.”
After 20 years in Nashville, Kyle, together with wife Kristin and two-year-old son Archie, now live back in his home town of Bowling Green, Kentucky, to be closer to family.
“It better suited us to come back home and, ironically, the album is called Kentucky Gold – so many stars lined up for that. It just seemed perfect.”
Perfect indeed…let’s all drink to that.
Kentucky Gold is out July 19 and is available to pre-order from the usual channels.
Tracklist
- ‘Can’t Hold Me Back’ (Clay Mills, Mike Krompass, Kyle Daniel)
- ‘Fire Me Up’ featuring Maggie Rose (Will Hoge, Kyle Daniel)
- ‘Runnin’ From Me’ (Adam Wright, Kyle Daniel)
- ‘A Man Like That’ (Michael Whitworth, Kyle Daniel)
- ‘Southern Sounds’ featuring Kendell Marvel (Kendell Marvel, Kyle Daniel)
- ‘Me & My Old Man’ (Adam Hood, Kyle Daniel)
- ‘Summer Down South’ featuring The Cadillac Three (Jaren Johnston, Kyle Daniel)
- ‘Following The Rain’ (Adam Wright, Seth Rentfrow, Kyle Daniel)
- ‘Deep In The Woods’ (Adam Wright, Kyle Daniel)
- ‘Wild, Free & Easy’ (Dustin Christensen, Kyle Daniel)
- ‘Everybody’s Talkin’’ featuring Sarah Zimmermann (Adam Wright, Kyle Daniel)
- ‘Divided We Are’ (Adam Wright, Kyle Daniel)
Upcoming tour dates
August 21 – King Tuts Wah Wah Hut, Glasgow
August 22 – O2 Academy 3, Birmingham
August 23 – Sounds of Nashville Open Air 2024, Köln, Germany
August 24 – The Long Road Festival
August 26 – The Deaf Institute, Manchester
August 27 – Bush Hall, London
Catch up with Kyle – www.kyledanielmusic.com