Kyle Nix of the Turnpike Troubadours Releasing Debut Album
This story has been updated.
Well look what we have here. If you’ve been hankering hard for anything Turnpike Troubadours related, it appears your prayers are about to be answered, and in a huge way. Turnpike fiddle player Kyle Nix is preparing to release a solo record, and we’re not talking about some slapped-together bedroom EP.
The Perry, Oklahoma native has been dropping cryptic hints about a new project on his Instagram page for months now, most recently in the past few days with close up images of what appeared to be a painting with no real context or explanation for the images. Back in late November, Nix said, “I’m workin’ hard on a record, man. And today it’s gettin’ pretty dern spaghetti western #tremelo #countrymusic #enniomorricone #turnpiketroubadours.” But since then it’s been more hints and allegations than hard information.
However at some point in the last few days, Kyle Nix switched the link in his Instagram bio from the Turnpike Troubadours site to kylenixmusic.com, which lo and behold, has a pre-order up for a new album called Lightning on the Mountain and Other Short Stories that is due out on June 26th.
Kyle Nix has never sung lead on a Turnpike Troubadours album, and rarely sings on stage aside from harmonies, perhaps leading some to believe he was a fiddle player, and a fiddle player only. But he’s been holding out on us big time. Lightning on the Mountain isn’t just a regular record. It has a whopping 17 tracks, and the LP version is a double vinyl. Kyle Nix not only wrote every song on the record except for one traditional, he made this solo debut conceptualized with deep storytelling, personal accounts, and stories he’s picked up from the road, all presented in a Spaghetti Western theme.
“I’m into Ennio Morricone,” Nix is quoted on his website. “He composed a ton of classic western soundtracks. On the record I applied the spaghetti western theme with instrumentals to imply a front cover, a back cover & picture pages… a short story collection.”
Oh, and possibly the best part is that the backing band is none other than Ryan Engleman, RC Edwards, Gabe Pearson, and Hammerin’ Hank Early—in other words, the Turnpike Troubadours. Recorded in Norman, Oklahoma with Wes Sharon as producer, it also features guest musicians such as Ian Moore, Byron Berline, Kevin Foster (of Jason Eady and Sunny Sweeney fame), and Dan Walker, known for playing keys for Heart.
Folks close to the project are saying this is not meant to replace the Turnpike Troubadours, but is also not meant to be some half-cocked side project either. Kyle Nix is swinging for the fences here, and putting himself out there as a serious singer and songwriter to go along with his reputation as one of the most revered fiddle players in country music. And from the snippets I’ve heard so far and the lyric sheets available on his website, Kyle Nix has been Turnpike’s secret weapon this whole time.
“Kyle Nix’s new album is an inspired and relevant work that easily takes it’s place at the forefront of red dirt music,” a quote from Jason Boland reads on Nix’s website. “The performances, lyrics, and production are downright amazing on these must listen tunes.”
Folks who were following the Turnpike Troubadours right before their indefinite hiatus can attest that Kyle Nix found another gear in the turmoil, doing what he could from his capacity as a side man to help hold the thing together, and give performances that extra boost. It’s that same passion that he appears to have brought to this project.
Don’t be surprised if there’s some official announcement on the album soon, along with a debut single, and if serve holds, even more surprises. Kyle Nix and Lightning on the Mountain and Other Short Stories just became one of the most anticipated releases of 2020.
Pre-Order Kyle Nix’s Lightning on the Mountain
TRACK LIST:
1. Intro
2. Manifesto
3. Lightning on the Mountain
4. Sweet Delta Rose
5. Prelude: Meet Your Match
6. Graves
7. Blue Eyes
8. Shelby ’65
9. Josephine
10. The Wolf at the Door
11. Little Miss Jones
12. Good Girl Down The Road
13. If Ruby Ain’t Happy
14. Woman of Steel
15. Lonesome For You (Widower, Pt.2)
16. Old Joe Clark
17. Reprise: Hacia El Ocaso
May 5, 2020 @ 8:22 am
Trigger, stop. I can only get so erect.
May 5, 2020 @ 12:05 pm
That is going to conjure up visions that I will not be able to get out of my head. But the excitement is warranted.
May 5, 2020 @ 3:09 pm
It may only be May 5, but let’s just award Ronnie “Comment of the Year” right now. It’s over.
Also can’t f##king wait for this one.
May 5, 2020 @ 3:28 pm
How did you explain this to the doc after you hit the four-hour mark?
May 5, 2020 @ 8:57 am
Thank God for some good news. Super intrigued to see what Kyle’s got.
May 5, 2020 @ 9:08 am
Not even one track as a tease?!
May 5, 2020 @ 9:20 am
My guess is we’ll hear a new song in the coming days and there will be a big official rollout. Right now it appears they’re just screwing with all us, dropping hints and info to gin up interest, and it’s working. But there’s a ton of info just sitting there right on his website, including the lyrics to all the songs. I did reach out through back channels to verify everything, and was able to listen to some snippets of stuff just to make sure it wasn’t totally amateur or something. All I can say is, this is going to be a very cool record.
May 5, 2020 @ 9:08 am
I wish there were a track or two to listen to. I’m a big fan of spaghetti western style music so this is going on my radar.
May 5, 2020 @ 9:14 am
Thanks for the info! I’m super excited about this and it sounds like it is going to be great. I have put in my pre-order. That is unusual for me as I don’t usually pre-order stuff but felt this was worth making an exception for!
May 5, 2020 @ 9:15 am
I love Turnpike, Kyle, concept records, and most of all Ennio Morricone. I can’t wait.
May 5, 2020 @ 9:22 am
Everything about this sounds great. Morricone puts together some great scores, so seeing this kind of take on that should be amazing. High hopes. I miss Evan, but I’m coming to this completely open minded.
May 5, 2020 @ 9:32 am
Is Kyle’s wife going to come after you about invading their privacy again, or is it okay as long as you’re promoting an album?
May 5, 2020 @ 3:36 pm
I’d be willing to bet that NPC is a dude. Man Fans are SO dramatic. Women just screenshot that shit, show it to their friends and move on. You silly boys love to dwell.
May 5, 2020 @ 4:12 pm
Considering I can barely name one TT song, I don’t really think that qualifies me as a fan. I’m more a passive observer to the Stan/wife/roadie/compadre drama that randomly hits the SCM comments then disappears without a trace. It’s weird, strange, and sad.
May 5, 2020 @ 3:53 pm
You sound like a snowflake, NPC.
May 5, 2020 @ 4:21 pm
In case the joke needs explaining, Kyle’s wife got really angry in the Facebook comments over Trigger covering TT’s court case, stating it was an invasion of privacy (spoiler: it wasn’t; it is public record). However, there have been no complaints from TT’s party regarding this article since it’s promoting an album and making them money. I have no opinion of TT or its fans; I just found humor in the irony. However, it is quite impressive that one comment has gotten me branded both a “man fan” and a “snowflake”! Is this what it feels like to be Trigger? When do I start getting backhanded and insulting mentions in hole-in-the-wall podcasts?!
May 5, 2020 @ 5:37 pm
NPC,
Understood your comment. Didn’t think it was out of line at all. Not sure what the overreation is about.
Just for the record, I respectfully disagreed when Kyle Nix’s wife said I was invading their privacy when posting about the lawsuit. At the same time, she was just doing what she though was best to protect her husband and his best interests, so I didn’t take offense to it. Hopefully it’s all water under the bridge. When you’re in the media, you’re going to catch some hell. It comes with the territory. I try to not let it affect how I cover artists. I’m here to inform the public about Turnpike, the good and the bad. In this case, it was the good.
May 6, 2020 @ 3:33 am
Sure Jan.
May 6, 2020 @ 3:35 am
Errr … that comment was for NPC, not Trigger.
May 5, 2020 @ 11:49 am
Look at that: an album full of country music. The song titles look great, and I’m glad someone else likes Morricone. Good things happen when good musicians are in charge.
May 5, 2020 @ 12:58 pm
I live two blocks away from Ennio Morricone in Rome. He’s a kind of National monument. Lookin forward to this release.
May 5, 2020 @ 4:06 pm
I think Kyle sang the lead on Austin to ashes..but other than that no others, ready to give his a listen..I really hope people don’t compare this to TT records..let it stand on its own
May 5, 2020 @ 4:16 pm
It was the first guitarist Casey Sliger who sang on “Austin to Ashes.” I had a couple of people reach out about that, and confirmed it was Casey and not Kyle.
May 5, 2020 @ 5:32 pm
Hell yeah!
May 5, 2020 @ 6:32 pm
Good news indeed! It’s why I keep coming back to this site.
May 5, 2020 @ 6:47 pm
Well, on the one hand I’m really looking forward to this. On the other hand, I hope it doesn’t mean we have seen the last of TT.
May 5, 2020 @ 7:44 pm
As a fiddle teacher myself with some contest winnings and an article or two in fiddler magazine under my belt:
Fiddle players who can fiddle, release albums of fiddle music.
Amanda Shires is a fine musician, but I don’t see an album of her fiddle playing on the horizon.
Louis Shelton was a great guitarist but I don’t believe there’s been an album of his guitar playing
And there’s a lot of great fiddle players who just… don’t have that magic finger to do what Michael Cleveland or Vassar Clements could do.
And anyway I’m not out to knock on Kyle Nix but when I saw the headline I was really hoping for an album of actual fiddle music… and then I read that it’s essentially another TT album
And hey we all want another TT album
And this looks really interesting. I love western stuff
But I’d sure enjoy an actual album just of fiddle music
May 5, 2020 @ 8:08 pm
Dang I’m looking forward to this!!!!
May 5, 2020 @ 9:37 pm
If you’re lucky enough to be up front near the stage, it’s fascinating to watch the non-verbal communication among TT’s band members, perhaps even more so when something goes wrong. In most cases, it’s the singer who’s in charge, and although Evan Felker is definitely an alpha, the foundation of TT’s live shows is the understated but rock solid leadership of Rooster and Kyle. Having many times watched Kyle’s razor sharp presence repeatedly keep the band on track, and often with only a suddenly insistent flash of his eyes, I’m not at all surprised to hear that he’s got a lot more to offer the musical universe than his consummate fiddle playing and exquisite harmonies. Like so many other fans, I’m hoping every day that Evan and the boys find a way to prevail over their immediate struggles as soon as possible, but until then (if “then” ever even happens… ), I’m way past excited to hear whatever Kyle and his eclectic crew have conjured up for us. We may have never needed an unexpectedly miraculous gift more than we do today.
May 5, 2020 @ 10:10 pm
Good comment.
May 5, 2020 @ 10:48 pm
Thanks, Trigger – coming from a writer whom I respect as much as you, that’s a compliment that I’ll remember. And please keep on fightin’ the good fight – we readers are happily spoiled by SCM’s constantly replenished trove of treasures!
(And if and when appropriate, I promise that I’ll argue with you as eagerly as I’ve praised you – while leaving out the all too familiar epithets, defamation, and ad hominem drivel.)
May 6, 2020 @ 5:15 am
But, but, no Lorrie in any of the lyrics…
May 6, 2020 @ 6:56 am
After spinning through some Morricone soundtracks, I checked out some of the guest musicians to try to anticipate some potential surprises. Two of them seem to play fiddle, which is no surprise. Morricone does some interesting things in his soundtracks with strings, and for lack of a better way to say it, we might see some violin playing on Nix’s album. The keys guy can play accordion and mellotron, so there might be some cool soundscapey stuff, perhaps even horns through the mellotron or something else he can play. Hank Early also plays accordion. It’s all speculation, but we could be in store for some incredibly interesting sounds and atmospheres here. Plus, Morricone made music in a lot of genres, soundtracks for horror and gangster movies. I know Nix cites the spaghetti western stuff, but you never know. I think we are in for a great surprise here.