Oklahoma City is a place with Jazz roots in it’s history. In more recent times, it seems like an area to me, that has remarkably evolved. An example and side plug I’d reference would be one of my favorite “alt country” type of indie artists, Matt Moran. And perhaps the happenings locally could very well be due to my own ignorance as an outsider looking in. That is the case of anyone outside of their own “stomping grounds.” At the same time, it’s just one more reason why music is so great today. The ability to zoom in, from afar, on any particular area’s happenings thanks to the digital era of music. I will stand to say that it OKC at least seems to be, from an outward perspective, a far cry away than the days of “MmmBop” in 1997. Enter OKC singer/songwriter David James McKinney, whose sound encompasses 90’s pop rock, acoustic folk music, reggae, and naturally some country western elements. He’s one of those solo artists that has been known to put together elaborate one-man performances incorporating loop stations and beatboxes. Those types of performances have always blown my mind when realizing how much sound is coming from one person. He has a new single coming out on October 26th called “Exactly What I Need”
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McKinney is no stranger to the LT1KF family, we covered his EP “Phaneron” back in April of 2021. He has been up to quite a few things since we’ve last checked in on him, including a highly active YouTube channel of live takes, performances, and demos as well as a release of his latest single, “Tornado,” a deep-seated love song with country chord progressions, on May 6th of this year.
The new upcoming single, “Exactly What I Need” reminds me of an acoustic song you’d hear on “40 oz to Freedom” by Sublime. A catchy, reggae feeling, main guitar riff carries the tune and melody from start to finish. Lyrically, McKinney delivers words that paint a picture visually in a listener’s mind (I.E., digging through boxes in his closet) yet interweaves specific personal pinpoints of memory (“1962, the summer I met you”). Clearly a love song, McKinney says this about his approach to songwriting:
“… for people who believe in the power of music to connect human beings in ways that transcend all other forms of communication. This single, “Exactly What I Need” is a surfy tinged pop rock gem about reconciling anxious expectation with the beauty of reality.”
McKinney delivers a meaningful vocal performance, going from chest voice to head voice to belting in a crescendo at the bridge. The song is a stripped down, warm, honest production and performance. It emits café style vibes featuring percussive instruments and bongos. All whilst expressing the simple but beautiful statement: “Who you are, is what I need.” He has been compared to Jack Johnson and Jason Mraz in the past, I tend to agree with that analysis, with a bit of John Mayer in there too I would say. I would highly recommend this artist for anyone who listens to and enjoys those artists.
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Don’t forget to support this project and to follow on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, TikTok, and Spotify. You can also check out his official website. If you enjoy his music and are able to provide monetary support, you might consider downloading it on Bandcamp.
It also helps to stream and share her music; you can obviously find it in the following Playlists: Less Than 1,000 Followers, Fresh Singles, Indie Only, Alterindie State Of Mind, 12 New Songs This Week, Chill – Folk – Acoustic, Autumn Acoustic, and Unknown But Essentials!
Remember that you can always find me here AMS Radio for all my social media and collaborations.
P.S. If you enjoy discovering new artists and fresh new music you can subscribe to this blog Less Than 1,000 Followers and follow the Playlist with all the artists that we have presented here!!!
This coverage was created via Musosoup #sustainablecurator
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