Now, it’s almost hard to imagine Koe Wetzel without his signature long dark hair and tattoos.
But there is proof, at one time… it existed.
Of course, he just put out his fifth studio album Hell Paso, and it’s already one of my favorite new releases from this year, but there’s just something about seeing videos of Koe singing back before it all really started that I find so endearing.
Mostly, it’s just a fun trip down memory lane, and today, we’re going way back to the year 2011, when a baby-faced Koe performed at a District FFA Competition when he was about 19 years old.
He broke out what was a then-new song from the Randy Rogers Band called “Steal You Away,” a track from their 2010 Burning the Day album which was written by Jeff Middleton, Mark Mulch, Nick Mulch.
It’s funny looking back on this now, as Koe’s arguably the biggest act to come out of the Texas scene in the last 10 years or so, but at the time, he was probably gearing up for his freshman season as a linebacker for the Tarleton State Texans, having no clue how this music thing was gonna work out.
Clearly, he’s come a long way since then, but I love hearing him sing a damn good country song, and one comment under the video summed it up best:
“A cross between Randy Rogers and Garth Brooks.”
That’s pretty much exactly what he sounds like here, and though he’s definitely found his own more rockin’, alternative sound over the years that really works and is completely unique, you know I have to say it…
I just can’t wait for this full-blown country album, and here’s why: you can say a lot of things about Koe, but you can’t say the man isn’t extremely talented and always has been.
Though it often gets overshadowed by the loud production and brash, wild lyrics, he has a fantastic voice that, in my opinion, was really made to sing country music:
“Steal You Away”
