*New Band on the Block* Alert
The Indigo is a brand new band of four based in Nashville. Initially founded in 2019 by childhood friends, Tanner Gray and Colby Wilson but soon after the band expanded to include two of Gray’s college friends and fellow players, Chase Porter (bass) and Zach Corder (drums). Undeniably they blend well together. Dizzy, which was released this October is the latest single along with the slower ‘Even If You Do’, which we also urge you to check.
“Dizzy” is the type of song which you can enjoy regardless of your age group but one which will take you back to your student years. If this was a teen movie this would be the song where the two actors spot each other in a room full of people dancing. Perhaps it is the playful vocals and the added spiciness in the form of guitar solos. A riff based composition with a nostalgia touch that would definitely be appreciated from anyone out there looking for new indie rock material.
Read our discussion below:
Describe your sound in three words please!
Not-Genre-Settling. We are dedicated to growth as humans and musicians. I think art and creativity is the forefront of accomplishment rather than fitting into a specific genre. We want to grow and try new things. I think our debut echoes that. We hope to continue to explore different genres as we progress as a band.
But so far, I guess we are blending influences from Indie-Rock, R&B, Pop, Folk, and Psychedelia? Genres can be so hard these days. WHO NEEDS ‘EM!!!
You are a newly formed band but with each member carrying lots of experience through the years. How does it feel to begin this new initiative?
The Indigo was kind of a long time coming for us. Tanner Gray (vocals, guitar) and Colby Wilson (vocals, guitar) are childhood best friends. They grew up writing songs and learning harmonies together. Tanner linked up with Chase Porter (bass) and Zach Corder (drums) while at Mississippi State University. During a 7 year span Tanner, Chase, and Zach were making music together, and over time, played in several different bands. Chase moved to Nashville and started playing singer/songwriter gigs, as well as playing in local bands. Tanner and Zach moved down to the 30A area in the panhandle of Florida after college, touring heavily in that region under the name The Graytones. Colby had settled in Birmingham and was playing with his band Smoking with the Bandit.
This set the scene for what became The Indigo in late 2019. Tanner at this point had moved back to his hometown of Birmingham, AL where he rekindled songwriting with childhood friend Colby. They began writing songs as a two piece acoustic duo and decided to form a band. They landed on “The Indigo” as the name of their project.
There had always been notions of a “dream team”, a group of friends and musicians that had never actually formed into a singular group to this point. Colby and Tanner made some demos of their best work of that time and sent it over to Chase and Zach. Zach had also decided to move to Nashville months prior. Once Zach and Chase heard the demos, they were blown away by the songwriting and the attention to detail in their melodies and harmonies. The Indigo was now fully formed.
During the time prior to the formation we all were doing different things and experimenting with different styles of music. Once we all were together the sound really started to form, sounds I’m not sure we could have found without experiencing different walks of life leading up to the formation of the band. We’re very excited to set out on this journey together. We trust each other musically and have a long formed brotherhood between us. It feels like the best is yet to come. We feel lucky to have finally had the opportunity to get all of these guys together to form this band.
You have tried to remain unattached to a specific genre. What would you say are the benefits and drawbacks of such an approach?
To this point I don’t think we’ve seen the drawbacks of this approach. The response has been really great so far and we are really proud of the final product (The album to release March of 2021). I guess all we can hope for is that the songs and what we’re doing resonates with people. I’d say there are drawbacks and benefits to any approach and we are definitely not groundbreaking with wanting to cut our teeth on different things. I guess our goal is take fans on a journey with us. We want things to feel unexpected, old, and new. The artists we adore most have a range to them. We hope to capture that.
Which are your main musical influences?
We have a plethora of influences, to name a few; The Beatles, The Beach Boys, The Smiths, The Eagles, Big Star, Marty Robbins, Fall Out Boy, John Mayer, Cage The Elephant, Norah Jones, Sturgill Simpson, The Shins, Frank Sinatra, Angel Olson, Vampire Weekend. Needless to say, there is a lot of variety and we love blends of modern day music with the touch of past inspired melodies and harmonies.
Should we expect a full album sometime in the near future?
To this point we’ve released 3 singles. “The Way Say No” was released September 4th followed by the track “Dizzy” released October 15th, then followed by the melancholy romantic ballad “Even If You Do” released December 6th of 2020.
We are so excited to announce that our 4th and final single “Foriegn Ties” will be released February 5th of 2021. This will be followed by our Album debut in March of 2021. The album is titled “Future Self Only Dreams”, a lyric pulled from what will be our 4th single “Foriegn Ties”. The lyrics read “Future self only dreams of what it was to be young”, an overarching concept and theme throughout the album.
The sound in Dizzy is really warm. We see that you worked with Toby Hulbert, an Abbey Road recordist. Nowadays when more and more artists follow a DIY approach, how crucial is to leave the technical part of a production to an expert?
Linking up with Toby, for us, was truly a dream come true. He is such a kind and knowledgeable person. I’m not sure I’ve ever met someone with the amount of patience he has. He is so creative, fearless and encouraging. He’s worked with so many amazing artists over his career several who are huge influences of the members of the band during his time working at Abbey Road and for Dave Cobb at RCA.
His knowledge of production is something we could have never touched especially for a debut. We are so proud to have worked with him and are so excited to watch his continued success come in his career. Toby is truly an amazing talent, and perhaps even more importantly, we are proud to call him a friend.
He’s recently moved back to London from Nashville to start a new studio project. Needless to say, we’re excited to hop the pond soon to check it out and hopefully record some more music.
What are your favourite recent albums of the past couple years?
Andy Shauf – The Neon Skyline
Phoebe Bridgers – Punisher
Vampire Weekend – Father of the Bride
Mac Miller – Circles
Waxahatchee – Saint Cloud
Gillian Welch – Boots No.2: The Lost Songs Volumes
Thundercat – It Is What It Is
Jason Isbell & the 400 Unit – Reunions
Billie Eilish – When We all Fall Asleep Where Do We Go
Harry Styles – Fine Line
Father John Misty – Pure Comedy
My Morning Jacket – The Waterfall II
Haley Heynderickx – I Need to Start a Garden
Your New Year’s resolution is…
We are dying to play shows and go on tour. I believe optimism and love is something we all need. For us and many people, music helps bring that to the forefront. It brings community. Which, sadly, most people are not experiencing enough of during these times. We’re eager to share our music live as well as receive music from other artists. There’s something so special about the mutual give and take that music provides. It creates community and camaraderie. It’s a sense of expression and release we can all share in one room collectively as peers, friends, and strangers. It’s a beautiful thing the world has been missing. We are optimistic that there are good things to come and an experience we can’t wait to share.
Thank you!
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