Stavely-born Cody Hall is out of the studio and ready to show off his new work.
Country music was never in the sights of Hall, who grew up on a little farm east of Stavely. He grew up around cows, green fields and farming equipment but left home Lethbridge bound for University.
For the last 11 years, he has been teaching Phys Ed to middle schoolers and only recently within the last six to seven years has he picked up music seriously.
"I started playing guitar in university I was really big into alternative and a little bit of rock 'n roll here and there. Theory of a Dead Man was huge at the time and Nickelback as well."
He adds "If I was going to be a musician at that point, I would have gravitated towards rock or something, but as I started to write, I just kind of found that my lyrics were a little bit more suited to country music."
He found himself writing about everything From being a father to the Alberta sky, Hall found himself genre-bending more and more. Thinking of himself less as a country music singer and as more of a singer, songwriter, storyteller.
Cody Hall at the 2021 Okotoks Show and Shine"I don't know if I belong in a genre to be honest. I guess country is a little bit slower and laid back and more about storytelling. So I guess that's where I kind of fit into that puzzle."
His last EP Peaks and Valleys came out in 2019 as was an acoustic project he did in a shed in his backyard. Fast forward to today and Hall is getting read to drop The Dark a song that touches and specifically talks about that process of it taking so long. He got to see directly a song come to life that's about kind of getting back into music.
"The message is pretty simple, it's just to be brave and not be afraid of the dark."
The new single was recorded at House Of Tone with the help of producers and musicians Joel Pearson and Wayne Proctor. They finished the song just over a month ago and Hall has been nervously holding on to it.
"I've had it for a long time. I wanted to coincide the release with this little road trip and concerts that I had planned. It's been kind of a test for myself on how patient I could be keeping February 4th as a release date.”
The Dark, available everywhere, is a song about fears. The things that we are unaware of or can't see. Taking the uncertainties of the future and facing them head-on and to not be afraid of putting yourself out there.
"The message is pretty simple, it's just to be brave and not be afraid of the dark."
This resonates with him in his personal life as well as professionally as a musician in the current social "COVID" climate.
"For me, this song is really taking that meaning because it's been such a weird hiatus these last 2-3 years with the uncertainty of performing or what's going to go on there and being the source of funds to record new songs. I'm going to save up here and take a big swing at it."
Listen to The Dark below or find it on your preferred streaming service.
Mon, May 6, 12:00 AM
Agriculture, Manufacturing, Labour, Full-time
Featured
