Lead guitarist & singer/songwriter Joel Allan has spearheaded an intimate & exceptional new project: Saloon Sessions.
Located at Saloon 37 in Lampasas, TX, the sessions are a FREE live recording of talented musicians with professional video & audio recordings by Fiasco Sounds. Allan wanted to create a space to revamp the music scene between the Stephenville & Austin area, a cool spot to stop when traveling from major music hubs, while simultaneously providing crisp content for growing artists. Allan's been a guitarist for 8 years & runs the Lampasas Music Collective, a fresh group of musicians working together to create an open space for creativity.
"We just started filming some local artists & central Texas artists," said Allan. "We've got a lot of videos saved up of live recordings of those artists, & we're trying to release them & get some exposure for artists that need support."
The venue itself is a historic shotgun building with old white brick & a massive vintage wooden bar. The eclectic outdoorsmen decor & open spacing gives a cozy large living room feel, like stepping into your grandpa's private saloon after dinner.
"This is the coolest little venue in this town," said Allan. "This [place] is such an intimate venue, we needed something like this."
I had the pleasure of catching artists Zach Huckabee, Dawson Holland, & Will Patterson at the Saloon Sessions. Each artist had their own distinct style & genre, ranging from polished storytelling to soulful blues. The variation of musical talent was refreshing, keeping me on the edge of my bar stool for the next sound to fill the space. I'm constantly craving environments that show me new things, new artists-- & I believe this is one of them.
Orbiting around the artists was Alek of Fiasco Sounds. I sat examining his shots from the camera monitor, impressed with the clarity & vision he had while highlighting each artists' specific talents. I've personally been a part of live recordings & know firsthand how difficult it is to capture clean audio while matching video. Alek's work speaks for itself in these session recordings [HERE!]
The Saloon Sessions are still open for artists looking to create professional content & would like to play in Lampasas. If that's you, you can contact Joel Allan through Instagram @SaloonSessions or his Facebook.
Hope to catch y'all at the next one: Wednesday Sept. 11 with Billy Hartman, Kerri Lick, & Rachel Cole.