Long gone are the days where down-home country music blares on every radio station throughout the nation. Rising star Sim Balkey is aiming to change that and ”turn back time,” if you will. With rich, deep sounds that resonate memories of listening to George Strait on the tailgate of your truck, to drinking a beer with your buddies while turning up Jon Pardi, Balkey has it all.
Growing up in New Mexico, Balkey was surrounded by all genres of music. However, the one that strummed his strings the most (pun-intended), was country. So, he set out to learn to play guitar and write so that one day he could pursue a career in making everyone happy with his gorgeous voice and heartfelt lyrics. Needless to say, we’re glad he did.
On July 14th, Balkey released his second EP “Straight Fire” and it is, in fact, straight fire. The seven track EP takes you down memory lane of when country music was, well… country. “I loved being able to take the feel of music I love and grew up on and wrap it into my own style. You can really hear it in songs like ‘Girls and Guitars’ and ‘Dammit’” says Balkey about writing for this project.
As an independent artist, Balkey was set on writing the majority of his songs, and making sure they connected with his audience on a level that he had not reached before. “Every project represents something different for each artist. This EP for me was about opening up and not choosing a style to write in, but letting the lyrics flow naturally. Also, having the freedom to work as an integral part of the production team let me really put my stamp on the songs, and that’s new for me. These songs just feel like me and where I am at musically and in life,” says Balkey.
It’s clear that Balkey intends to take Nashville by storm, and with his latest EP, he’s undoubtedly on his way to the top of the charts.
To hear Sim Balkey’s new EP, listen here and enjoy the audio for “Dammit” below!
Be sure to share Sim’s music with other country music fans!
