The Pink Stones- 9:30pm

Thank the Lord... it’s The Pink Stones

Biography

“We believe in some pretty strict rules,” says Pink Stones frontman Hunter Pinkston.
“We also believe in breaking them. This band was built on reimagining tradition, on
honoring the old ways while pushing them someplace new.”
On their intoxicating new album, Thank the Lord...it’s The Pink Stones, Pinkston and
his bandmates do precisely that, offering up a joyful, adventurous take on ’60s twang
that blurs the lines between cosmic country, folk, bluegrass, soul, and psychedelic rock.
Recorded once again with co-producer/engineer Henry Barbe (Drive-By Truckers,
Deerhunter) in the band’s hometown of Athens, GA, the collection showcases a more
deliberate, mature side of The Pink Stones’ sound, one that reflects all the personal and
sonic growth that’s defined the last few years for the hard touring five-piece. The songs
on Thank the Lord... are humble and timeless, full of wry, sardonic wit and rich,
evocative storytelling, and the performances are easygoing and amiable, with an
effortlessly natural feel that belies the masterful craftsmanship behind them. The result
is a record that wears its influences proudly on its sleeve, even as it a subverts
expectation, a work of poignant longing and playful humor that tips its cap to everyone
from Merle Haggard and Earl Scruggs to Don Williams and The Byrds as it looks both
forwards and backwards all at once.
“A lot has changed since the last record,” says Pinkston. “We’ve grown up, traveled all
over the world, said goodbye to old bandmates and welcomed new ones. All of that’s
helped our sound grow and evolve into what it is now.”
Started alone by Pinkston in his Athens apartment, The Pink Stones quickly emerged to
widespread acclaim with their 2021 debut, Introducing...The Pink Stones, which earned
praise from Rolling Stone, Under The Radar, No Depression, American Songwriter,
and more. The band returned two years later with their similarly well-received
sophomore effort, You Know Who, which featured an appearance from Nikki Lane and
landed on Bandcamp’s Best Country Music of 2023 list. Dates across the US, Canada,
Europe, and Australia followed, including festival appearances from 30A to Hopscotch,
and while the band’s rapid growth could be traced in large part back to the undeniableenergy of their raucous, freewheeling live shows, working at such a relentless pace came with a price.

“We were touring constantly the year after You Know Who came out,” Pinkston recalls,
“and some of the guys realized that wasn’t the best fit for them. That forced me to find
the kind of players who really wanted to be on the road all the time, and it forced me to
step up and play more lead guitar, which naturally affected the kind of music we were
making together.”
With new additions Caleb Boese (pedal steel) and Michael Alexander (drums) joining
Pinkston (guitar/vocals) and longtime compatriots Adam Wayton (bass) and Neil
Golden (keyboards), the band resumed touring at their usual breakneck speed, working
up tunes for roughly half the new record live before heading into the studio.
“I wanted to keep things fresh for the recording process, so even though we’d played a
bunch of the songs on the road, I made sure there was still plenty of material the guys
hadn’t heard until it was time to record,” says Pinkston. “There’s just something about
the sound of a band finding the songs as they’re playing them for the first time that you
can never recreate.”
That sense of raw discovery and excitement is plain to hear on Thank the Lord..., which
opens with the shuffling title track. Featuring mandolin and vocals from bluegrass
phenom Wyatt Ellis, the tune is laidback and self-assured, dazzling in the depth and
breadth of its musicianship without ever resorting to flashiness or cheap thrills.
Pinkston’s tongue is planted firmly in cheek here as he gives thanks to God for the lover
that’s made his life complete, and it’s not the last time he’ll offer up a sly take on country
music’s longstanding—and sometimes conflicted—relationship with religious imagery.
The tender “Such A Sight” (featuring former Pink Stones pedal steel guitarist John Neff
on dobro) finds Heaven right here on Earth, while the waltzing “Start With Your Name”
contemplates the ninth commandment’s prohibition on deceit and dishonesty, and the
puckish “Hometown Hotel” forgives itself for some good old-fashioned sinning.
“I’ve never been religious,” says Pinkston, “but I’ve always been fascinated with those
early country guys who sang gospel tunes and wore suits with crosses on them even
while they were getting into some pretty immoral stuff. I wanted this album to touch on
both sides of that coin.”
Despite its flirtations with virtue and vice (Pinkston stands in front of a church on the
cover, casting a shadow with a subtle pair of horns), Thank the Lord... is, at its heart, a
classic Pink Stones rumination on human connection, on love, loss, and desire. The
aching “Real Sad Movies, Big Jet Planes” can’t seem to escape reminders of the one who got away; the honky-tonking “If I Can’t Win (With You)” learns to go it alone; the
Latin-tinged “Cold Eye of Leaving” (featuring vocals from longtime Pink Stones
manager Drew Beskin) watches love walk out the door; the bittersweet “Summer’s Love
(Winter’s Pain)” comes face to face with loneliness; and the lilting “Hard To Kill”
grapples with emotions that just won’t seem to fade. “It’s hard to kill / The way that you
feel,” Pinkston sings over soaring pedal steel and driving fiddle (played here by special
guest Libby Weitnauer). “When love’s still real / But down went the deal.”
“I’ve always tended to gravitate toward those kinds of stories as a writer,” says Pinkston.
“Heartbreak, regret, unrequited love, that’s our wheelhouse.”
And yet it’s perhaps the most hopeful tune on the record, the effervescent “Too Busy,”
that best encapsulates the magic of Thank the Lord..., with its infectious melody and
double-timed chorus all delivered with the relaxed, unhurried air of someone who’s
found exactly what they want (and knows exactly how to hold onto it).
“Our last record got really loud and fast and in your face at times, but it was important
to me that we lay back on this one,” explains Pinkstone. “The band played softer, I sang
softer, and we just embraced the mystery of it all.”

(Hunter Pinkston pictured above)

That is, of course, until the song’s final seconds, when the band’s gentle serenity gives
way to an all-out psych-rock jam featuring Curtis Callis on banjo. It’s a brief, but potent
reminder: some rules are made to be broken.

CODY BOLDEN- 8pm

A New American Outlaw

By John Midkiff

Cody Bolden is as American as they come a fan of country music, tasty pie, and good whiskey. He grew up in Georgia but spent every other weekend with his father on his familys property in Alabama, affectionately referred to as the farm.

When asked what that was like, Bolden said, Georgia is home; it always will be, but it was nice to get back there. It was like camping with power, sitting at the pond, which was backed up to the Talladega National Forest. It was just pure.

Some of his music draws its roots from those Alabama trips. His feature song, Yonderway, is a callback to a simpler time when there was nothing to worry about except what was in front of you.

Bolden didnt grow up in a typical music household. His mom sang along with the radio. His dad did karaoke and would sometimes take him along. It wasnt until Christmas of 2014 that Bolden considered playing music. That year, his wife bought him a guitar and five 30-minute lessons. Admittedly, he didnt get a lot out of those lessons. By the time he got in the room and got his stuff unpacked, the lesson was nearly over.

A few years later, Boldens wife enrolled him in a guitar class at Kennesaw State University. That was when the guitar started to make sense. The class length and the weekly repetition helped solidify things for him.

Even so, the path to performing hasnt been a straight one for Bolden. He doesnt draw income solely from his music. He and his wife also own Pie Bar in Woodstock.

After a new music venue opened next door to Pie Bar, Bolden performed at their undiscovered artist event. This performance was the first time he had ever played for an audience, and it inspired him to get serious about his music. He started writing songs and enjoying the artistry of it. In 2017, he played his first paying gig and never looked back.

When Bolden decided to record his first track with a full band, he had never recorded with a group of musicians or that many instruments. He told the musicians to do their own thing around the acoustic guitar, to let the song develop organically. Bolden wanted the song to be as much an act of creation for them as it was for him.

Boldens new EP dropped in July and is available on iTunes and Spotify. For more information about him or his upcoming shows, visit CodyBolden.com.