Mile 0 Fest 2025: Ground Zero for Big Moments

What happens at Mile 0 Fest in Key West doesn’t stay in Key West. It resonates throughout the Texas/ Red Dirt world, into Americana, and throughout independent country for the rest of the year.
What happens at Mile 0 Fest in Key West doesn’t stay in Key West. It resonates throughout the Texas/ Red Dirt world, into Americana, and throughout independent country for the rest of the year.
There’s just about no better place to be in the world in the dead of winter than Florida, and it’s even better when you get to listen to some of your favorite songwriters showcase their stuff.
The story of the Turnpike Troubadours is one of a victory, where the better angels of a bunch of friends from Tahlequah, Oklahoma refused to allow some moments of weakness and the outside noise to tear asunder something…
RC Edwards stumbled upon Lance Roark in 2020 during the Turnpike hiatus/pandemic when he was looking for a lead guitar player. Roark fit the bill, but has subsequently slid even deeper into the Turnpike universe while finding a way to showcase his own music at the same time.
Mile 0 Fest has established itself as one of the premier destination events in all of country and roots music, especially if you’re into the Texas/Red Dirt side of things. Now after six years, Mile 0 Fest has its own traditions, it’s own nucleus of loyal patrons and regular performers, and a heap of fond memories.
Infinite apologies if you came here looking for your next favorite boot scooter, because that’s not what Song of the Year is all about. There will be a Single of the Year category coming up too. But what we’re looking for here is the most unabashedly slow and sentimental sad bastard songs possible.
The Saving Country Music Top 25 Playlist is built to keep you informed on all the best songs and albums coming out right here, right now in country and roots music. It’s available on most all streaming formats, or you can just use the song, artist, and album recommendations.
At the beginning of his career, John Fullbright was considered one of the fastest-rising names in the Americana scene, validated by a Grammy nomination. Now an album released eight years later into a musical world where there are dozens of rising names, the threat is that it gets overlooked.
The amount of album releases these days can be dizzying. And it can be even more daunting when you have a release day with some super big titles that suck up all the attention when some of the other releases from smaller and more independent artists are just as important or enjoyable.
The final months of 2022 are here, and just like the first portion of the year, it is jam packed in an increasingly cluttered environment for new releases. Instead of being overwhelmed, use this guide to help you navigate through the crush of titles, with the first 20 albums listed considered some of the top releases.
There are now two consecutive country music festivals planned for Key West, Florida for the Winter of 2023: The 6th Annual Mile 0 Fest featuring Red Dirt, Texas, and Americana, and the 90s-centric Key Western Festival, happening the very next week.
John Fullbright was the well-beloved songwriting wunderkind nominated for a Grammy who we all thought was the bright future of Americana, who then turned elusive performer only a few knew exactly what happened to. But now he back with a new release called “Liar.”
Almost six years to the day that they announced their hiatus, The Damn Quails will be returning with a new album called “Clouding Up Your City.” The new album was actually originally announced as a Bryon White solo album, but Gabe Marshall has returned.
Don’t ever take the moments you share with your favorite artists and bands for granted, because you never know when they could get scuttled and go away forever. That is the lesson of the last 2 1/2 years for the Turnpike Troubadours. And thankfully, that painful lesson is finally over.
I haven’t wanted to do this. Because ultimately, it should be the primary members and partners of the Turnpike Troubadours who should be allowed to control the narrative about any potential reunification, or the lack thereof for the band that went on indefinite hiatus two years ago.
Hear ye, hear ye, hear ye. By the power vested in me by country music, I am officially declaring the 28th of August, in the Year of Our Ford 2020 as an officially-sanctioned country music holiday, with all the rights and privileges thereof afforded to all self-professed country fans.
Any Turnpike Troubadours fan worth their salt already knows all about the lineage of the girl named Lorrie through multiple Turnpike Troubadours songs. Lorrie is not the only recurring character in the Turnpike Troubadours universe though. This is all the genius of Turnpike’s frontman and primary songwriter Evan Felker.
The Turnpike Troubadours and Jason Boland and the Stragglers have just announced the lineup for the 2019 Medicine Stone Festival on the grounds of the beautiful Diamondhead Resort in the Turnpike’s home town of Talequah, Oklahoma. The lineup has expanded to 32 names in 2019.
It will never be the easiest festival to get to for anyone. It’s certainly not the cheapest when it comes to ticket prices, accommodations, or incidentals. But what’s for certain after the second year of Mile 0 Fest in Key West, Florida, is that this is Texas and Red Dirt’s premier musical event each year.
How people feel about the Turnpike Troubadours at the moment depends a lot on who you speak to, and if they’ve been personally caught up in some of the recent cancellations. But when it comes to their fellow artists in the Texas/Red Dirt scene assembled at this week at Mile 0 Fest, it’s love, concern, and respect.
Oklahoma’s Turnpike Troubadours were forced to cancel their appearance Sunday night (8-26) at the Fayetteville Roots Festival after frontman Evan Felker was deemed too ill to perform. The cancellation comes after the band canceled their final appearances on the Miranda Lambert and Little Big Town “Bandwagon Tour.”
American Aquarium should no longer be around. It was a marginal name to begin with, and for a band that was tough to define or find a home for, and that was built upon the concept of drugs, drinking, and the implosion of life before you’re 30. But frontman and songwriter BJ Barham was too stupid to quit.
Fans of American Aquarium have known the name of their upcoming album for a while. Now they have the details. This is not the situation of a band on the mend backing into an effort to survive. Arguably ‘Things Change’ sees the 12+ year project by BJ Barham just now reaching its stride.
For six years straight, the Turnpike Troubadours have celebrated a self-appointed holidays each Spring called Dia Del Gallo at the historic Floore’s Country Store on the outskirts of San Antonio. The city has always been a crossroads of cultures, and the rooster (“gallo” in Spanish) has always been the band’s official mascot.