Archive for the ‘Songwriting’ Category

Hot Indie News “Sobering” Review

Singer/songwriter Nick Peay’s ‘Sobering’ is about just what you think it would be –  facing your demons and being honest with yourself on decisions and life choices. The result of his five-song EP is a strong showing of brave lyrics and great American rock and roll music beds.

In “Put This Bottle Down” the cool, electric guitar opening sounds just like a steel door slamming against a grand, solid oak bar. It reminded me of Steve Earle and his Americana-rock-country orchestrations. Peay’s voice is strong and could fall somewhere between John Rzeznik (Goo Goo Dolls), Rob Thomas (Matchbox Twenty) or even one of the many vocalists at the helm of Foreigner over the years.

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Nick Peay Comes to Grips with Sobering – Indie Music Review

From Louisville, Kentucky comes singer/songwriter is Nick Peay and this is his story of struggling with and coming to grips with addiction.

Opening with “Put This Bottle Down,” the mood is upbeat and too much hasn’t yet become too much for him. “Every Morning” is another uptempo song where he laments “I miss you every morning,” and a sense of loss is evident but not overwhelming. It’s on the third track, “I Won’t Fall in Love” where everything crashes headlong into itself. “First it’s last call, then we’re out of here/A belly full of thought and a head of beer/You might blur a little/I just might slur a little.” but it soon becomes evident Life has caught up unceremoniously and our narrator sounds ready to stop. “Ok baby, I think I’ve had enough. “ he offers with a tired sense of resignation.

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“Sobering” Review on NeuFutur

The Sobering EP is a tremendously inspiring effort that marks the meteoric rise, bottoming out, and reclaiming of Nick’s life. With tracks including Put This Bottle Down, Every Morning, and Sobering, Peay is able to tell a story of lost love, coping mechanisms, and bundles these themes up in a stellar singer-songwriter style that is equal parts pop and rock. Put This Bottle Down is a quick-hitting introduction to Peay’s music; while the song concludes at the 2:30 mark, the theme continues into Every Morning. The frenetic energy that is exhibited here takes up hints of Soul Asylum and Counting Crows, but these five efforts possess a greater thematic cohesion than any album we’ve heard this year. Every Morning keeps things in the top gear, with punchy drums, insistent vocals, and sizzling guitar work that is sprinkled amongst the track.

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Skope Magazine “Sobering” Review

Armed with a whole crew of talented musicians to bring his songs to life, solo-artist Nick Peay has released the Sobering EP just a little earlier this September into the world awaiting. Those looking for an authentic acoustic/rock sound in the spirit of bands or artists like Toad The Wet Sprocket, The Fray, Nick Drake, The Head And The Heart, Gin Blossoms…that kind of melodic-rock that sounds inviting and pulls you in easily through smooth-flowing verses and bright-choruses…if that’s you, then throw on some Nick Peay and dig on some sweet rhythms through this latest effort.

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“Sobering” Review in Music Emissions

In a series of successive themed sets, Louisville experienced singer/songwriter Nick Peay is back again with a new EP,Sobering. Following a familiar tale of addiction and the complications of life resulting from it, the EP was essentially put together and shelved several years ago before Peay and his band dusted it off and brought it to the studio. With a narrative that portrays the broadness of the topic rather than bogging down in specification and an organically produced rock sound that meets somewhere between the early reflections of Neil Young and Bob Dylan with the alternative 90’s pop-leaning sound of Collective Soul and Fuel, Nick Peay and his band offer an impressive and impassioned musical story to take in. 

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Live From Your Living Room, From My Living Room

I host a monthly show called “Live From Your Living” on the last Thursday of every month. A new guest joins me every month on my couch to share some songs. The 45 minute show is streamed live via YouTube (previously StageIt) so anyone can watch it online, from their living, hence the name. The original title was “Live From My Living Room.” After the third email asking for my address, I changed it to “Your Living Room.

Nick & Champ - Live From Your Living Room

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I’m Not Phil

I’m Not Phil. That’s the title of the song I wrote about Groundhog Day. Not the movie. The actual day. Yes, it does seem weird that I would write a song about Groundhog Day. But I did.

I got to thinking about how the groundhog, despite being called Punxsutawney Phil, isn’t the real Punxsutawney Phil. I wondered what it might be like if the groundhog knew that and whether it would be bothered by that? What if the groundhog didn’t think it was fair that the whole country turned to him to say whether Spring was coming early?

Anyway, I wrote a song about it. You can download it for free on my SoundCloud page.