About two months ago we had the pleasure of sharing our thoughts on Cory Branan’s new record, “The No-Hit Wonder” with you (read the review here). We loved the record so much that when we heard he was going to be playing The Drinkery OTR in Cincinnati we reached out to see if he would be up for chatting with us. I was very fortunate to speak to Cory over the phone in what turned out to be a very enjoyable conversation. We talked about him being named one of the best new artists twice in a decade, Jason Isbell’s Scrabble skills, and most importantly…we talked music. Hopefully you will enjoy reading this interview as much as I did conducting it! Be sure to check Cory out on October 18th at The Drinkery OTR!!
The Music Room: Hey Cory, thanks for taking time to talk with us today. First off, congratulations on the new record (The No-Hit Wonder). It is an awesome record and I am just blown away by it. Now that it has been out for a couple of months, how has the reception to it been?
Cory Branan: Itās doing well. Iāve been out touring. Some of the towns that I kind of hit a wall in where I thought it was never going to get any better, eventuallyā¦actually they have doubled. So the kids are coming out, so yeah itās fun. Right now Iām actually out with Against Me and Gaslight Anthem, so thatās a Ā fun one too.
TMR: I saw that Rolling Stone Country actually named you as one of the top ten NEW artists to watch (laughter from Cory). Considering you have been a recording artist for over a decade, how does that make you feel?
CB: It just cracks me up reallyā¦mainly. Especially since Rolling Stone in 2002 or 2003 put me on their āhot listā (laughter) in the same magazine. So itās funny you know? I have been doing this so long that Iāve outlasted clubs, promoters and stuffā¦itās funny that Iām outlasting editors at magazines. I donāt know if they remember that they said that I was new in 2002. Iāll take it. Iāll take whatever I get.
TMR: Is it that kind of thing that went into naming the record āThe No-Hit Wonder?āĀ Was it a tongue in cheek kind of thing, or something out of frustration?
CB: It was just a song. I balk at naming a record after a song usually. I just ended up doing it. It was really written for, and Iāve said it before, for all of my buddies who are out there doing thisā¦just treading water. I have so many friends who are doing this. Itās a weird time for this. Itās never been an easy thing, but now itās definitelyā¦.with people not buying records like they used to and the whole thing shifting to a less of a tangible thing. I think in five years we wonāt own anything, it will all be curated. Weāll subscribe to our record collection. Weāre in the middle of that and havenāt found a way to make careers happen out of that. So everyoneās treading water pretty hard. I donāt know, itās just written for anyone out there, not just in music, but for anyone whoās not taking short cuts or following trends. Anybody who is sticking to their guns and doing what they believe in. Itās also obviously about me too. Itās my list of grievances (laughs). Itās definitely tongue in cheek.
TMR: That is one thing that we feel very strongly about is actually going out and buying music and holding it your hands. That seems to be a great thing about the Bloodshot label, the fact that they are releasing stuff on vinyl. I think that medium is certainly helping with some of that.
CB: Some, and actually thereās a huge resurgence. So much that I actually ripped through the first pressing of vinyl. Now itās been on back order for a month and half. Itās a good problem to have, but itās also like, come on guys, Iām on tour without vinyl. There are still variables there. Itās still a pain in the ass. It costs a lot to make, and itās heavy. Itās so funny ācause kids are like, āIt just sounds better.āĀ Iām like wellā¦yes and no. It sounds better on a hi-fi, but no one has a hi-fi anymoreā¦no one has a stereo receiver anymore. That little thing that you bought at Urban Outfitters, it does not sound better than your iPod. Itās all relative.
TMR: I think that one positive about the change in the music scene is that there is freedom to do more things. You donāt necessarily have to stick to one label. When I listen to your record I hear Cash. I hear Petty, Seger, Roger Miller and SunVolt. I hear I all kinds of different influences that make it hard to pin down your music to one genre. Who are your influences?
CB: Everybody you just named I love (laughs). I grew up listening toā¦When I first discovered John Prine,Ā I didn’tĀ discover one record, I discovered his anthology āGreat Days.ā I think I might have grabbed a few too many greatest hits records growing up. Where you hear the whole artists career and how they changed on record. I like to do that on one record. The songs arenāt hits mind you, but I like records that do a lot of things. Itās just me writing me and I have the call on what they end of being. I just let the songs dictate where they want to go. I try not to enforce things. I try not to be like this is going to be this kind of record. I did sort of notice that this record was becoming a roots record. Some of the old ones that Iāve written that would fit that like āSour Mash,ā āMean Time Bluesā and āSkywriterā those are old songs. They just never fit what I was doing before. Ā I was like, hereās there home here.
TMR: You just kind of answered my next question. This record did seem a little more honed in than the others. Do you think you have found your ānitchā as an artist, or do you still consider yourself a mutt? (Brananās 2012 record was called āMutt.ā)
CB: Definitely a Mutt. I did notice this record was a little straighter of a record. I relaxed a little more about it. Now that Iām on Bloodshot and they want to release records, you know? Before I used to think I had to put everything on the record. All my records before were an hour long. I had to take fifteen minutes off of āMuttsā to fit it on vinyl and a download. This one I consciously made. I was, āWell, Iāll just make it fit on vinyl.ā (Laughs) Itās still eleven songs. I donāt do a lot of solos, or extended musical jams. I did leave some air on this one here and there. There are some musical parts that go on a little ways. I said thereās no reason I canāt make this record in thirty or thirty-five minutes. I just tried to make one of those records that you wantā¦or hopefully that you want to start over as soon as itās done.

TMR: You have a guy out there in Jason Isbell, who might be the top guy when it comes to making true and honest music, who just canāt say enough good things about you. He even called you his favorite singer/songwriter.
CB: Yeah, Jason is a good dude. Heās a good buddy.
TMR: Heās on a couple tracks on the record. How did that come about?
CB: I just asked him to come by. His wife, Amanda, is an old, old friend of mine. They moved into Nashville and we just kind of hang out. For a while there it was Justin Townes Earl and his girlfriend and Jason and his wife, they would come over cause my wifeās a great cook. Weād just sit around and let Jason beat us at Scrabble.Ā Boy has smarts for a guy from Alabama; you donāt want to play him at Scrabble.
(Laughter)
TMR: Iāll have to keep that in mind.
CB: So yeah, I just called some buddies up that I knew would fit each song. Jason, of course, would have fit every song on the record.Ā But I had him in mind for āYou Make Me,ā and once he sang on that I was like, well, whiiiile youāre hereā¦.. cause he knocked it out so fast. He was real nice and let me borrow his beautiful Martin for āSkywritter.āĀ So I played his Martin on that. Heās a real good dude.
TMR: With the three guys you just mentioned, Jason, Justin Townes Earle, and yourself, you have three of the best records out today. Next time you guys get together to jam make sure you hit record. That would be a hell of a jam session.
CB: (laughing) Like you said, weāre all out on a record, so we donāt get together much anymore. Iām actually touring with Justin next month.

TMR: I know that there were four years in between āThe Hell You say (2002) and ā12 songsā (2006), and another six years between ā12 Songsā and āMuttā (2012). There were only two years between āMuttā and āThe No Hit Wonder.ā Did that have to do with the Bloodshot deal.
CB: Absolutely. The reason before was just business. When my first record came out they sort of took a business hit and it was hard for me to get them to let me make the next record. The timeline on that is a little weird. The first one came out nationally in 2003 or 2002. Then 2006, so four years later was the second record. I actually recorded āMuttā in 2010 but I didnāt have a label I just got it financed through someone. Then I had to shop āMuttā for I think a whole year before Bloodshot picked it up. I thought I had a great record and I didnāt want to just throw it against the wall and have it disappear.Ā And once they finally picked it up it took a while to get out. The timeline is trickier than it looks, but it was still a huge gap in betweenā¦.way too big of a gap for me. I want to put out a record a year. The good thing is that I have eighty to a hundred songs that havenāt been recorded, so as Iām writing the new stuff Iāll always have stuff to pull. Maybe those songs will find a home. When I do a narrative/folk record the song āSultanaā that people know from shows will find its way on a record.
TMR: You have a show coming up here in Cincinnati this Saturday night at The Drinkery OTR.Ā It will be my first opportunity to get to see you, probably along with a lot of other people. What can we expect from a Cory Branan live show?
CB: Just anything you want really. I never make a set list. I play a few off the top of my head and then anything anybody wants to hear.
TMR: So if I holler out āShadow,āĀ thereās a chance?
CB: Definitley!
See Cory Branan at The Drinkery OTR this Saturday night, October 18th!! Click here for details!!
Special thanks to the fine folks atĀ