so,....granted there is alot of country music in texas,...i mean, it is,...TEXAS
but the stuff pumpin out of the texas/oklahoma scene right now is so different than the poppy boy band crap commin out of nashville (i doubt that means much to you being from new zealand,...but trust me there is a differerance)
there are also crazy lines drawn in the texas country scene,...most of them will fall in these catagories:
organic jam bandesque stuff:
highly influenced by bands such as the grateful dead and the allman brothers and the band (there was about a year that everyone was ending their shows in 'the weight') these bands often have that throw back feel often in the way their live shows morph from song to song and blur the lines of any kinda of "plans"
example:
stoney larue doin alittle zep (i just like this version)
YouTube - Stoney LaRue and the Arsenals doing "The Ocean" by Led Zeppelin
old school tradional country music:
heart ache, my dog died, lots of waltzes,.......not really my FAV, but i enjoy dancein to it,....lots and lots of fiddle
example
aaron watson
YouTube - Aaron Watson - "Reckless"
jason boland
YouTube - Jason Boland & The Stragglers - Somewhere Down in Texas
nods to the old gaurd:
its all about the story and what they have to say,...some of them may not have the best voices, or the tightest bands,.....but the words are important
example:
ryan bingham
YouTube - Ryan Bingham - Bread And Water: Video - Closed Captioned
todd snider
YouTube - Todd Snider - Talkin' Seattle Grunge Rock Blues
texas country rock:
they are just way louder than everyone else
example:
cross candian ragweed
YouTube - Cross Canadian Ragweed - Lighthouse Keeper
reckless kelly
YouTube - Reckless Kelly - Crazy Eddie's Last Hurrah (Live)
the old gaurd:
currently my favorite,....singer song writers,.....they, of all people, capture the true meanin of what it means to be texan,.....its they way they look at life, and translate it to us through their words,.....
guy clark
YouTube - GUY CLARK - LA FREEWAY
jerry jeff walker
YouTube - Jerry Jeff Walker Up Against The Wall Redneck Mother
robert earl keen
YouTube - The Road Goes on Forever by Robert Earl Keen Jr
i'll add more to this later