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The Austin Singer-Songwriter Your Next Road Trip Requires

Hayes Carll – TRIBEZA

Austin Music Pick: Hayes Carll

Gruene Hall
New Braunfels, TX
August 19 & 20

The oldest dance hall in Texas will host a touted veteran of the Texas music scene for two nights this month. Hayes Carll was voted Best New Artist in 2002 by The Houston Post and has since released four albums. Under the wing of Ray Wylie Hubbard, Carll has toured tirelessly, playing nearly 200 dates a year.

Sarcastic, insightful and unapologetic, Carll is not afraid to speak his mind. The Austin-based singer-songwriter has developed his own voice over the past decade and rather than focus on whiskey and women, he writes country tunes that range in theme from political hypocrisy to personal Christmas fails. You may have heard his latest single, “Sake of the Song,” on the KUTX radio airwaves: “Yeah, hitchhike and bus ride and rental car, living rooms, coffee house and rundown bars; ten thousand people or alone under the stars, all for the sake of the song.”

Watching Carll onstage is a rollercoaster ride: one minute you’re in deep thought, contemplating the meaning behind a particular line you just can’t shake, the next you’re laughing like a kid at a dumb joke he cracked in between songs. Whether it is his poignant lyrics or witty banter, Hayes Carll will get smiles cracking, toes tapping and you might just walk away with a little more wisdom in your pocket (or at least a new catchphrase).


Read more from the Nightlife Issue | August 2016