This week’s local artist spotlight goes to Drumming Bird. Drumming Bird, AKA Austin Sawyer is a Chattanooga native. His Southern roots are seen in many of his indie-pop hits, like his brand new album release, Ocoee. Named after a YMCA summer camp in Georgia, Ocoee almost seems like a continuation of his 2019 debut album, Great Smoky Love, a stunning album that mixes indie-pop and folk-inspired vocals in a slow sweet package. The most notable tracks off of the debut record are “Great Smoky Love”, “Summer Traces”, and “Lucille”. This album is a deeply personal look at love and loss throughout adolescents.
Ocoee, his sophomore album, holds true to who Sawyer is as an artist. Some of Sawyer’s biggest inspirations come from Dawes and Wilco. His vocals are so reminiscent of indie-great Jeff Tweedy, but Sawyer puts a spin of his own that blends folk and bedroom pop in a new and innovative way. The subject of our affection today is the first single of the record, “Feels Like 98”. This song is about the beautiful and hard parts of life and relationships, both romantic and familial.
Ocoee has some unforgettable tracks like “Weekend Fisherman”, “Nights Turn to Nothing” and “Ocoee”. Check out this brand new album, and be sure to keep up with Drumming Bird for show announcements, giveaways, and music updates.
We’ll be playing “Feels like 98” throughout the week as we feature Drumming Bird as our Local Artist of the Week. Catch it live on-air at 100.1FM on your dial or streaming live at lightning100.com.
Written by: Madison Sharp
