10/28/11

Austin Allsup is offering his third album “Sink or Swim”. This project was completed with singing, songwriting producer extraordinaire and Red Dirt giant Mike McClure. “Sink or Swim” is being released independently and our first taste of the new album is the debut single “Some Days”, The words that come to mind when listening to the single “Some Days”are soulful, heartfelt and inspiring. Austin’s power vocals supported by first class players provides an uplifting approach to tough times. No matter where you are in life, you can’t help but feel better after singing along to this tune. It truly replenishes the soul and isn’t that what music is really about?

“Sink or Swim” is 11 tracks of great music that embodies Country, Rock, Blues and an original vibe that can’t be described with mere words. This is a great album and proves that independent, self- penned music is where it is!

Kevin McCoy
Program Director
95.9 The Ranch Fort Worth Texas

Austin Allsup - Sink Or Swim 11/1/11

I don't know why when I look at the release date for Austin Allsup's latest project, I see Austin Allsup. Maybe it's the in commonality of his slender build and that of the number one. Maybe it's that his intials are A.A. and the letter A is the first (1) number of the the alphabet? Guess what. Neither. I just thought of that and thought is sound cool, poetic and deep. Isn't that the way these CD review's are supposed to read? All deep and just far enough over someone's head that the common fan of music can only grasp at a nugget or two of information to use in deciding whether or not it's worth a listen. Sorry. I am out on all that mess and here is my take straight forward. Just me talking.

You want to impress me? I have three criteria.
1.) Lyrics
2.) Music
3.) Unique

Austin Allsup's Sink or Swim... Check mark, check mark, check mark. Does Austin have an advantage because of his bloodline. Maybe. Has he ever leaned on that and used it for his own gain. Nope. Lyrics are strong and mean a lot to Austin. They come from deep, deep, deep within. Scars have been violently ripped open for all to hear about. The music behind the lyrics is just cool. I can't write it or play it but I can feel it. Unique. Every bit. I can't tell you how many times I have had the "watered down Texas / Red Dirt music scene" conversation with fans and "professionals". My goodness some of you need to start paying mom and dad back their front money and get your career rolling. That said, Austin is just the opposite. He can sing! Top to bottom he carries all notes. No one else can scream, on key, like Austin. He follows no paths. He blazes his own. Advice on the way is welcome.

Austin is still consider somewhat of a newbie although he been at this for sometime. If more MD's, PD's and SM's would take the risk, he would have the accolades he deserves by now. If you're not out in front looking for something cool and instead just eating what's fed to you, fans and "professionals" alike, I feel bad for you and for so many sincerely talented people like Austin Allsup. Sink or Swim. It' s up to you now. That's just me talking.

See You Down The Road...
Justin Frazell
KFWR 95.9 The Ranch

If you are looking for the another side of Austin? This is it!

This guy/ band just keeps cranking out great music. I couldn’t wait for the next track, 12 times!

I hope the rest of the industry sees what these guys are doing, again.

The live show has been great for a long time and now new tunes to show off.  I can’t wait to see these in a live show.

I don’t really know how to classify Austin’s sound. It is just really good. I wish he would put out a new album once a month.

There is no “sinking” with a sound like this.

Austin’s vocals are smooth. The band is in a great groove. The songs are solid.

Marty Travis
General Manage – 16yr.
Billy bob's Texas

Austin Allsup is a rugged musician whose dry wit and passionate musicality are present on every note of his sensational new alt-country album titled "Cryin' Out Loud" from Smith Music. Allsup is a country star in the making, and he offers intense, multi-dimentional lyrics and strong vocals that can only be described as a perfect mixture of a Texas country-style Eddie Vedder with the lyrical prose of Lucinda Williams.

The similarities to Lucinda Williams don't end there, because both artists have famous fathers that loom large over their music. Williams learned the importance of lyrics from Miller Williams, one of America's greatest contemporary poets. Likewise, Tommy Allsup, famed lead guitarist for Buddy Holly and the Crickets, taught his son, Austin, everything he knew about music. But Austin Allsup wisely chose not to rest on his family name, and he carefully honed his craft. Allsup slowly strengthened his songwriting, vocals and live performance by traveling the long American highways with his friend, Mike McClure, who produced the album. In fact, Austin Allsup's tenacity and hard work during these years are clearly evident and paid off in a big way with "Cryin' Out Loud." 

The album's cover photo features a picture of a confident Allsup taking a long stride - almost daring the listener to walk along with him and plunge into the first track. Indeed, "Patience Of A Pearl" has a Red Dirt edge with lyrics reminiscent of Chris Knight. Allsup's superb, emotion-filled vocal performance also gives vital clues to his seemingly complex personality. The second self-penned cut, "Blows Away," is even better and is filled with passion and exceptional instrumentation. However, the best song on the album is "Sweet Love." This tune is successful because it mixes all of the aforementioned key elements that make Austin Allsup a great country music artist. Plus, this song has a casual elegance and easy-going mood that will make it a top country chart hit.

The biggest surprise of the album is the title track "Crying Out Loud." The cut starts out strong with a low-key melodic vibe, but the tune slowly builds to a rousing crescendo. "Cryin' Out Loud" is a meaty, country music triumph that belongs on the iPod of every true fan of country music. "Cocaine Rodeo" also deserves special notice for it's rockin' beat, and it should be a live concert favorite with it's unforgetable lyric: "Wake me up and get me high."

Austin Allsup, who was born in Fort Worth but grew up in Little Rock, displays significant musical versatility on the country rock tune, "Free Ride," and the bluesy "Take Me With You." But the album "Cryin' Out Loud" really hits it stride with laid-back songs like the "Briley," the engaging "Walking" and the country anthem "Heaven Holds My Road." There's good reason Austin Allsup has shared the stage with a diverse group of artists such as Jason Boland, John Mellencamp, Blake Shelton, Cody Canada, Van Zandt, Lee Ann Womack, Randy Rogers and Stoney LaRue.

The 10 songs on Austin Allsup's "Cryin' Out Loud" showcase a music professional who is bold but not brash and confident without being cocky. This is a rare combination in the alt-country genre, and the album "Cryin' Out Loud" leaves no question that Austin Allsup is ready to rock the country charts for the next couple of decades or so.CountryChart.com

Austin Allsup is a complex guy -- tough, tender, lost, confident, sane, crazy -- but what he isn't is lazy. A couple of weeks ago, the 25-year-old Fort Worth singer-songwriter played a set of full-on Red Dirt rock 'n' roll originals, all in the spirit of Springsteen, that lasted for about four hours. Allsup is recording his third album, at Fort Worth Sound, and has reunited with Red Dirt forefather and producer Mike McClure, who produced both Allsup's debut album, 2004's Intensity, and his most recent record, May's Cryin' Out Loud.

"I write non-stop," Allsup said. "I feel like the creative process never really ends or begins -- it just is. That's what allows us to have the live reputation we have. No two sets are going to be the same, and I think people appreciate that. I hope they do, anyway, because that's just the way it has to be for me."

Cryin' Out Loud comprises equal parts tender, lilting melodies and bombastic choruses. Lyrically, Allsup manages to sound introspective but not whiny or plaintive. On "Heaven Holds My Road," he laments a loss as eagerly as he searches for solace. "Blows Away" takes aim at backroom corruption. "Cocaine Rodeo" is an acknowledgement of the hedonistic desires of a road-weary performer. "Austin is one of the most naturally talented guys I've come across," McClure said. "He writes great songs and has the swagger to pull it off without looking like a jerk."

As a child in rural Arkansas, Allsup found his way to music via the church choir. "I just grew up singing," he said. "Before I could even talk, I would hum along with the choir or with my mom around the house. I had these little melodies and sounds that I repeated. That's how I learned that my voice was my instrument."

At 17 and in Memphis, Allsup spent some time in juvy jail. But through that experience, he got to know his father. Austin came into being only because Grammy-winning guitarist Tommy Allsup lost the coin toss for a seat on the plane that crashed and killed Buddy Holly, Richie Valens, J.P. Richardson (a.k.a. the Big Bopper), and the pilot, Roger Peterson. On Cryin' Out Loud, Tommy Allsup played guitar on "Take Me With You," an old-timey-sounding romp tune.

"I never really knew my dad until I got locked up," Allsup said. "He started visiting me, and we got to know each other. When I got out, he bought me this old acoustic guitar and moved me out to a big ol' spread he had in West Texas. For a while there, it was just me and him, working that place and learning about music. He sort of helped me realize that I had potential."

But Austin Allsup, who's married and has a young daughter, is a self-made guy. With two albums out and another on the way, he's getting busier. The still-untitled new record is tentatively scheduled for a summer release. He’s gigging at a regular clip, and that won't change anytime soon.

"At the end of the day, this is a business," Allsup said. "I've been lucky so far because I've been true to myself and what I wanted to say with each record. ... I hope to have a very long career. They may have to prop me up with a cane or let me take a walker on stage one day. If I can have a career that long, it would make my heart happy, and that'd be a life worth living."

-Fort Worth Weekly-