Colter Wall - Full Session - 5/16/2017 - Paste Studios - New York, NY

hey everyone welcome to the pace studio in New York City we're here with Colter well welcome thanks for having me mm-hmm your debut album self-titled debut album came out last Friday congratulations thank you you're gonna play a couple songs from that record for us that is the plan all right what's the first one you've got for us today the first one is actually the first song on the record it's called 13 silver dollars and it's the first single yeah yeah that's right whenever you're ready [Music] was a cold and cruel evening sneaking up on speedy Creek found myself sleeping in the snow [Music] one or two odd reasons ain't too proud to repeat now say I had no place to go it was a Russell and a hummin just all and down the street threw myself up from my icy bed painted on that shiny car the letters RCM NP feel little aching in my head and then out jumps it's old boy about twice the size and me yes me firm a name where I dwell [Music] I just look them in the eye and sang Moo yeol number 9 in catch the reference I could tell then the old familiar clip and the handcuffs spine written to left me loose know where I late [Music] he just laughed and touched his gun and turning to me he said son but you don't own a damn thing to your name I got my help jonbi Stetson I got me a bottle full of babies Bluebird wine I left my stash somewhere down and Preston along thirteen silver dollars in my mind I got my health John B Stetson I got me a bottle full of babies Bluebird one I left my stash somewhere down and Preston along with thirteen silver dollars in my mind thirteen silver dollars in my mind [Music] [Applause] awesome thank you so one of your descriptors as has been seen on the internet which obviously means it's true there's a 21 year old Canadian millennial which doesn't really sound very ripe for such Deep South inspired country tunes um how did that happen what led you to this kind of music well I grew up listening to country music I think a lot of people from spending a lot of time in the States have noticed that a lot of folks down here are a little confused I think about how they think of Canada and in that I think a lot of folks think of it it kind of is just one like its own state kind of thing but it yeah so you mean it's not more than like Toronto Montreal in Vancouver right no it's it's actually a you know it's a big sprawling country and every place he goes different they have different cultures just like it is here and just like it would be in any country and the the part of Canada I grew up in is sort of they call it it's it's it's sort of in the Midwest we call it Western Canada in it some I grew up in Saskatchewan which is for anybody that doesn't know is sort of right on top of North Dakota and Montana where they meet and for anybody that doesn't know this that's that's pretty wide open country out there and and there's a there's not a lot of people so it's a lot of rural communities and a lot of farmers and ranchers up there and not really much else so naturally people were they liked country music up there and I was kind of raised listening to that sort of stuff growing up in a small town pretty close to the Montana border up there in Saskatchewan and so country music has been you know a part of my life since for almost as long as I can remember growing up listening to it in the house and and that's sort of where that comes from and the the more I guess some southern folk stuff and and blues and folk music and traditionals that stuff I kind of had to do a little more research and fondant on my own but as far as Country and Western goes it's sort of built into me just you know from day one at what point did you realize that you wanted to go into music professionally that's a good question I guess around my second year of pretending to be going to college was around the time I decided that I was gonna stop pretending to be going to college and just drop out altogether which I did eventually and I decided that whether or not I could make a professional career out of it I was gonna pursue music and and you know do whatever else I had to do to to pay bills and stuff but but yeah I guess around then it's kind of when I decided I'm gonna start to try to play shows for money and make it you know if I can make a career out of it then that'll be crazy and if not then on you know I don't have any plans to stop figure it out yeah yeah exactly well good and again self self-titled debut album out now what's the next song you've got for us the next song I've got is as a song called motorcycle [Music] [Music] [Music] while a figure I'll buy me a motorcycle a pretty little frame around a telephone pole rider off a mountain like ol Arlo figure I'll buy me a motorcycle well a figure all walk to the liquor store Thunderbird 2 bottles maybe three maybe four follow my feet down music roll [Music] pour it on the pavement like you wouldn't to stole like you wouldn't turn stall argue at a tombstone pour it on the pavement like you would a tombstone [Music] figure on weary of a feeling this way pop another pill hop in another train tell my brothers and my sister said it's keeping me sane figure I'm weary of feeling this way [Music] I'll figure all by a motorcycle a little frame around a telephone pole lighter off a mountain [Music] bigger I'll buy me a motorcycle a motorcycle figure I'll buy me a motorcycle [Music] [Applause] are you really weary or do you have a good imagination where do these amazingly detailed descriptive narrative songs come from well that's a great question I guess I say maybe a little bit of both because I always kind of consider myself as a person with kind of a wild imagination and I do sort I do write a lot of songs that that are certainly more fictional than they are autobiographical but at the same time I write you know a lot of the songs on most of the songs on this new record are pretty true stories about personal experiences I've had what I try to do when I write especially if I'm sort of you know if I'm telling more of a fictional story than I try to take him certain feelings or certain aspects about experiences I've had personally and find a way to incorporate them into these songs and these stories about other people maybe that have kind of you know come out of my head somehow or you know people that aren't me so you know I guess I guess yeah maybe a little bit of both I consider myself a pretty imaginative guy but at the same time I've been through some some stuff I guess I'll say fair enough yeah that makes sense what's the last song you've got for us today last song I'm gonna play is a murder ballad called Kate Buckhannon you know I was actually going to ask you about about Murder Ballads mmm I feel like it's a lost art in a way like it has its place in in old country-western tunes yeah um why I decided to write a murder ballad in the 21st century well what does it mean today I love I love old murder bailenson and you know folk songs and old country songs I think it's a wonderful tradition and that realm of songwriting that's kind of been forgotten to a certain extent I think a lot of people aren't aware of that tradition and because that I've caught a little bit of flack for you know writing a murder ballad and it's not like anyone that writes a song like Knoxville girl or willow Garden or little Sadie it's not like anybody that wrote those was condoning you know shooting a loved one or murdering anybody for that matter it's just you know it's a story acknowledged yeah it's a it's a it's just a good story and it makes for for I think great songs you know it's a great subject so I'm uh I'm happy to try to write songs like that and try to do those old folk songs justice and kind of give them new life I guess and continue that rich tradition yeah absolutely okay well now that we've discussed whenever you're ready [Music] [Music] flavor is a wicked bird his wings are black is sin [Music] any floats outside my prism windows rocky knows within [Music] and he sings to me real low hell to where you go [Music] for you didn't murder Kate McKinnon [Music] when I first met Tom I was working in mine [Music] said he had himself dark-haired daughter long green eyes [Music] and when she and I didn't meet she was bathed a little freak [Music] prettiest girl in the whole damn harlot ain't no lie [Music] so I went a-courtin Katyn the cannon [Music] got me a job and I quit my ramble [Music] every day I'd say a quarter of my pain [Music] if I could buy a diamond ring [Music] when they are come on the fine my darling angels not inside so I made for the creep we're seeing lot didn't me [Music] the founder with some mother love her [Music] [Laughter] [Music] [Laughter] [Music] put three rounds indicate mechana [Music] [Laughter] [Music] excellent I think you honor that tradition well thank you so going back to some of your other influences and stylistically and musically and narrative lis you had some did some work with Robbie Turner who used to work with Waylon Jennings Steve Earle has endorsed you and you cover a Townes Van Zandt song on your record that's right any are you playing snake Mountain blues live these days we yeah we've we've been working it up I've recently been playing with with a band which has been really fun and a new thing of you know I've played solo for I guess most of my professional career or whatever you want to call it so to get to work with the bands we've been really fun and we've we've kind of worked that one up a few nights it's a great song got a solo version handy that we could nudge you to play yeah yeah if you'd like to hear it sure I'm wearing my time you are line the town's shirt so [Music] enough [Music] [Music] mr. $10 man let me tell where you bound drink your green liquor Lourdes you wrote to the ground well you come around here with your money in your hand taste of my woman where you die where you stand [Music] well snake mountain blues got me down low and not good not in the more they no one would know [Music] well the woman's come around in my body she fine you go down Dundee [Music] have her a time [Music] [Music] my daddy or dear I on a long holy train first wins winner I'll see him again and it's farewell to this yellow-headed misery of norm snake mountains Colin [Music] calling me [Music] well snake mountain bluh [Music] cut me down low and I could die in the morning no one will know well woman's come around and my body she's fine go down Dundee have her a time have a time [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] dude thank you for indulging us specifically um what's coming up next you just had a gig at Rockwood here in New York last night and some tour dates Europe I see us coming up soon we are hopping on a red-eye flight over to London in the UK we're gonna do some shows over there we're gonna do some shows in Ireland I believe some stuff in Germany I know we're doing Berlin and I show an Amsterdam I think a few other shows in Holland and then I think we'll probably come back stateside for some more some more shows in the southeast and and kind of all around so uh yeah that's that's as far as I can remember what's up next I think sounds good well thank you so much for for dropping by playing a song or three or four debut record self-titled record out now Colter well thank you so much thank you

Channel: Paste Magazine

Views: 693,347

Rating: 4.9404421 out of 5

Keywords: Paste, live session, New York, NY, Paste Studios, Full Session, Colter Wall

Id: ddrO3EkQrpY

Length: 23min 10sec (1390 seconds)

Published: Wed Aug 08 2018

Reddit Comments

[u/rokatansky]

Amazing