Culture Greyhound

Up until about a month ago, I lived in the blue part of that “map” up there – I recently transferred to deep in the red, but I have been a Texan my whole life.  And there’s no place like it.  Anyone visiting will tell you: there’s something about the Lone Star State, a vibe, a sense of pride you can’t find anywhere else in the Union, or the world for that matter.  And I don’t plan on leaving anytime soon.

One of the best things about Texas is the music – from the country background of our capital to the rock and roll roots of the South Plains, to the Dirty South “Screwston” scene, to the metal movement based in DFW.  Harlem, Willie, Buddy, Pantera, Paul Wall, we’ve got it all.  I invite you to listen to the new mix Subservient Experiment has posted featuring only the finest in the state’s indie rock offerings.  It’s an awesome sampling of great tunes from such a huge land mass, and it has inspired me to make my own mix.

So enjoy a helping of tracks from the friendliest region on the planet.  I think you’ll agree: everything’s bigger in Texas, even the sounds.

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“Lubbock has this way of, while you’re there, making you feel like it’s the most normal place in the world; not until you go away and start comparing your experience there to the outside world do you realize that Lubbock is really one of the strangest places anywhere.” — Joe Ely

“Life in Lubbock, Texas taught me two things: One is that God loves you and you’re going to burn in hell.  The other is that sex is the most awful, filthy thing on earth.  And you should save it for someone you love.”—Butch Hancock

“You either go crazy or play music in Lubbock. There’s not a hell of a lot to do.” – Delbert McClinton

“There was this thing about the horizon in that flat country. When you were out playing, you loved to look and say “Oh, yeah, the earth is round.” And you would be right in the middle of it. I’ve always thought that being in that spot gave you this feeling that you were the center of the universe, that you were really special, and at the same time you were just a speck of absolute nothing.” – Jo Harvey Allen

“Lubbock was just a tiny town, a little oasis in a big old nothingness, and I spent every bit of my waking time just trying to figure out ways of getting out of there.  But I really loved all that sky. You gotta fill it up with something, and music is a pretty good thing to fill up emptiness with.” – Joe Ely

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