When live music came to a sudden halt due to the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic, rising country group King Calaway utilized the unexpected downtime to hone in on their unique country-rock sound and songwriting.
As the music scene opens back up, the male-dominated five-piece band composed of Caleb Miller, Chris Deaton, Simon Dumas, Chad Michael Jervis, and Austin Luther walks back into the limelight with a SoCal 1970s country-inspired EP titled Midnight, which is available now on all streaming platforms.
After signing with Red Light Management earlier this year, the group decided to flip to the next chapter of their music career by showcasing their stacked harmonies and their emotional play-on-words with a four-track collection.
“As vocalists, as instrumentalists, we are definitely matured over these last couple of years. I think we are a lot more settled in our positions musically,” says King Calaway about finding their fresh sound during an exclusive Celeb Secrets Country interview. “It was a tough year, but it did give us a second to sit back and be like, ‘what do we want to do next?’ So, it was kind of a blessing in disguise,” they add.
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In the midst of the global pandemic, the breakthrough group started penning ballads for Midnight via Zoom. With the same goal in mind, the group crafted over 80 songs. “We kind of went in with the mindset of kind of over recording, and we had so many songs that we absolutely loved,” shared Simon Dumas. “We trusted our instincts and thought about what was going to help represent us – as the initial burst. Now that we are reemerging after so much downtime.”
After a long time being apart, the men packed up their bags to head to Asheville, North Carolina, to live in a house together for three weeks. During this time, King Calaway focused on their new direction and worked alongside producer, Justin Niebank.
Before putting together the well-throughout EP – band-member, Dumas explained that they called in their team, families, and loyal fans to receive honest opinions on potential frontrunners. “It was really cool to kind of get their reaction and to see like what they were digging and what songs they related to. I felt that was really important for us to do… they have been waiting for a while for us to put out new music.”
Following the valuable listening session, the group narrowed down their list and even turned to country newcomer, Lainey Wilson, to join them on the up-tempo track, “Good Time To Me.” In fact, the feel-good anthem was written by Lady A’s Charles Kelley, Russell Dickerson, Corey Crowder, and Steven Lee Olsen.
Credit: BBR Music Group/Stoney Creek Records
“Charles sent it over to us saying that he had us in mind,” revealed Dumas about the only outside cut on the EP. “It was pitched to us before we were even looking. We wrote a whole batch of songs, and it was still one of our favorites by the end of it. So, we are super grateful that they passed it onto us, and Lainey could do her thing on it.”
This edgy-country collection comes after the success of their 2019 album, Rivers. It was their hit single “World For Two” that placed their name on the map and became the No.1 most added song on country radio in its debut week. Since then, the five-member band made their Grand Ole Opry debut, made an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, The Late Late Show with James Corden, Today, and The Kelly Clarkson Show.
Credit: Twitter @KingCalaway
Now, the men that makeup King Calaway are ready to tackle live performances again and show their growth as vocalists. “We would love to hit the road and tour this fall,” says the band as they gave Lady A a quick shout-out to add them to their What A Song Can Do Tour. “We are genuinely ready to rock and play some shows, but we also want to make sure it can happen safely.”
In the meantime, King Calaway encourages their fans to stay connected, as they will be taking Instagram by storm to perform hits off of their recently released EP, Midnight via livestream.
For more on King Calaway’s music, watch our full interview below. Don’t forget to let us know your favorite song off the new EP is by sending us a tweet at @CS_Country!
LISTEN TO MIDNIGHT EP HERE:
