Tay Bronson Releases 'Bad Apple' Today
TAY BRONSON
UNLEASHES SOPHOMORE ALBUM
BAD APPLE
OUT TODAY
Above: ‘Bad Apple’ cover art
NASHVILLE, TN (August 16, 2024) — Today, singer-songwriter Tay Bronson releases his sophomore album, Bad Apple. Known for his traditional country sound infused with wit, humor, and observations of the human experience, Tay Bronson is back with a collection of songs that highlight his distinctive style. Bad Apple offers a diverse mix of tracks that showcase Bronson’s knack for storytelling, etched with lighthearted and poignant themes.
With Bad Apple, Bronson and his band, “The Tackle Box,” take a more cavalier approach, embracing infectious songwriting that’s both relatable and engaging. “The thought here is, don’t take yourself too seriously,” shares Bronson, who has been actively creating music since 1991. “There’s always going to be someone more clever, funnier, or prettier.”
LISTEN/SHARE “BAD APPLE” HERE
Bronson’s most recent single off the album, “Hole In My Pocket” (released on July 17), co-written with Jackson Emmer weaves a narrative that's as catchy as it is clever. With Bronson's trademark humor cutting through the melody like a sharp knife backed by the whistle of a pedal steel, "Hole In My Pocket" offers a refreshing reprieve from the weightier themes that anchor Bad Apple, such as previous single, “Kitchen Table.” Co-written with Eric Richard Stone, the melodies echoing through “Kitchen Table” contain threads of familial nostalgia and shared grief, coloring the quiet whispers of cherished memories and the silent lamentations of empty chairs. Through the tender interplay of acoustic chords, lonesome pedal steel and heartfelt vocals, the song serves as a poignant homage to the enduring sanctum of the kitchen table, where love and loss converge in a timeless embrace.
As AmericanaUK framed the song’s concept: “Tay Bronson’s latest single focuses on that bit of furniture that can so often become so much more than what it was originally planned for – sure, you can eat at the ‘Kitchen Table’ but you might also prepare food, study for an exam, use as an office space, file away the bills in that big pile at one end. If the kitchen is the heart of the house then the table is the heart of the kitchen.”
Contrary to the laid back sonic delivery of Bad Apple’s lead offering, “Might Just Think Again,” the song was actually sparked by frustration. “I was driving to a gig at the Metamora Opry Barn and I got really frustrated. So I just pulled over to get a beverage. I said ‘man, I sure do like my soda from a fountain.’ Next thing I knew, I had a chorus and a verse written before I got to the gig. It’s a fun, lighthearted song, and that’s exactly what I wanted to release first, before we started introducing the soul of the album.”
From the witty humor of “Drunk Shopping” and “Hole In My Pocket” to the deeply heartfelt “Kitchen Table,” there is a bit of all the elements that make up the human condition across the 10 song’s Tay Bronson delivers on Bad Apple.
Bad Apple Track Listing:
“Bad Apple”
“Never Saw It Coming”
“Kitchen Table”
“Hole In My Pocket”
“Might Just Think Again”
“Sometimes”
“Drunk Shopping”
“Thanks Thanksgiving”
“Trips Around The Sun”
“When I See You Again”
Above: Tay Bronson
About Tay Bronson:
He picked up a guitar in seventh grade and hasn’t put it down yet. “It’s kind of like my therapy in a way,” says Bronson. Since 1991, Bronson has been active in pursuing his musical aspirations. With Push Down & Turn—the alternative rock group that achieved national and international acclaim with Bronson as bassist and primary songwriter—Bronson got to live his dreams until the band decided to take their hiatus in 2003. At that time, the lifelong Indiana-based musician turned his time and focus to raising his daughter and continuing to build upon his life experiences which all started to pour out into his debut 12-song album, Drinks & Memories, released August 21, 2020.
“I was always a big fan of the ‘90s alternative rock scene but a few years ago I began really digging back into some of my early influences like Waylon Jennings, John Prine and Hank Williams Jr.,” notes Bronson. The authenticity of what those artists sang about can be found throughout the grooves of Drinks & Memories and Bad Apple.
During Bronson’s tenure with Push Down & Turn, his songs appeared on all four of the band’s albums and Demo EP in addition to compilation albums the band was featured on including major brands like Abercrombie and Fitch, Lidz and Cool Cigarettes. Their music was als featured on every major daytime soap opera, sans General Hospital, in the U.S. and abroad. Additional band highlights include a five-show stint on 1997's HORDE tour and opening for the Counting Crows, extended tour dates with the BoDeans, Freddy Jones Band and many others. They also shared the stage the following year with Oleander, Everclear and Kid Rock at X-fest 1999.