"I did what I wanted to do," he exclaims. "This was straight up me. Nobody told me to do this record. We pulled in every genre we were feeling at the time. We spent the last ten years trying to make this sound -- Hell Paso is it."
Never compromising, Koe might just be the last real rebel out there. The gold-selling singer, songwriter, guitarist, and producer shakes up the status quo, shatters expectations, and sticks to his guns with a sound steeped in country storytelling, yet spiked with grunge grit. He's unapologetic, undeniable, and unlike anyone else you've ever heard. Without anything to prove and nothing to lose, he continues to kick ass on his own terms. Breaking through with a series of independent releases and tallying over 1.3 BILLION streams to date, he has impressively notched three RIAA Gold-certified singles, including "February 28, 2016," "Something To Talk About," and "Drunk Driving." The latter adorned his 2020 Columbia Records debut, Sellout, which arrived to widespread critical acclaim from American Songwriter, Billboard, The Boot, Rolling Stone, and more. At the same time, he has quietly emerged as a powerhouse performer. He graced Pollstar's "Top Worldwide Tours" back-to-back in 2020 and 2021, moving hundreds of thousands of tickets in the process. In addition to headlining his own Koe Wetzel's Incredible Music Festival, he has packed arenas, amphitheaters, and ballparks across North America, attracting a devout audience.
At the top of 2022, Koe and longtime collaborator Taylor Kimball retreated to Sonic Ranch Recording Studio -- a stone's throw away from the Mexican border just outside of El Paso, Texas. Holed up on a pecan farm for a month, they had nothing to do "except eat wonderful Mexican food and fucking play music."
"It was straight-up bliss, man," he says. "I couldn't go to the bar because there isn't one. I just had to make music!"
Fittingly, he set the stage for Hell Paso with "April Showers." Powered by a galloping riff awash in distortion, it culminates on one of his most chantable choruses. "It gives you a taste of the entire record," he adds. "It was a good song for everyone to jump into."
On its heels, the single "Creeps" crawls on grimy guitar towards a sing-song refrain tailormade for stadium-sized crowds -- or karaoke at your favorite old watering hole.
"It was a feel-good song for me," he says. "I'm big into the zombie apocalypse like The Walking Dead, so I wanted an apocalyptic zombie video for this bitch."
Punctuated by nocturnal Spanish guitar and spaghetti western-style whistling, "Cabo" recounts a weekend of endless debauchery in Mexico with no shortage of gory details. "It's a million percent true," he grins. "I've pissed off a lot of girlfriends and wives, but other than that it's wonderful."
Hank Ealy from Turnpike Troubadours lays down tear-drenched pedal steel on "So Low" where Koe confesses, "I'm so low it's fucking awesome. Makes me glad there ain't a cure for insane."
"It was like nothing we've ever done before, so I was like, 'Hell with it, put it on here'," he says.
"Yellabush Road" brings him back home with vulnerable verses and another vital hook, "And I'm way too blessed to bitch today."
"'Yellabush Road' is my community," he goes on. "It used to be a lot bigger. They had a school, a church, and everything out there. Now, there's not even a road sign for it. This is my hometown song though. You get on the road, you get away from everything you know, and you start to miss it. So, the tune puts me back there."
Then there's "Better Without You." Guitar wails in between a punch beat as he promises, "I'm doing better without you being around."
"I bought a house a year ago, and I've probably slept in my bed for maybe like two months out of the last year," he notes. "I had to unpack everything in my garage. One of those boxes had all of my ex-girlfriend's shit in it. It was raining outside. I was in one of those moods where I was like, 'Fuck this, I'm going to sit on the couch and grab a guitar.' You're over it, but you're not really over it."
The ride reaches its emotional highpoint on "Sad Song." He concludes the record with a fiery final word.
"I just got in the booth and sang," he recalls. "It was all in the moment."
In the end, there's nobody like Koe, and we should be really fucking grateful.
"Put out something authentic, it worked. This record is going to get a lot of flack, but it's going to get a lot of love too. I'm not going to stop. Hopefully, I go home at some point, kiss Grandma, and she'll maybe cook me breakfast."
Song I Can Drink Too
Koe Wetzel Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
No, it ain't somethin' I can tap my boots to
You're playin' the guitar just too damn slow
Like songs about heartache is all you know"
I told him, "Oh man, I can't figure it out
Won't you tell me the kind of song you wanna hear about?"
And he looked at me strange and he said somethin' weird
And this is what he whispered in my ear, oh whoa
"Give me a song about beer cans and whiskey bottles
Backroads, pasture parties
Loose women, tight jeans
The Texas country music scene
Bull fightin', bronc ridin'
Raisin' hell, done been to jail
The smoky bars I came to see
I need a song to play to get me through this day
If you wanna know the truth
All I really want
Is a song I can drink to"
I got on stage, ready to play my first show
I grabbed my guitar, reset the capo
Asked my band what they wanted to play
And I could tell by the fear and the look on their face
I told the crowd, "Here's a song that you ain't heard
But by the end of the night, you'll know every single word
And by the end of the night, you'll know every single word"
To a song about beer cans and whiskey bottles
Backroads, pasture parties
Loose women, tight jeans
The Texas country music scene
Bull fightin', bronc ridin'
Raisin' hell, done been to jail
The smoky bars I came to see
I need a song to play to get me through this day
If you wanna know the truth
All I really want
Is a song I can drink to
Give me a song about beer cans and whiskey bottles
Yeah, them backroads, pasture parties
Oh, them loose, naughty women in them tight fittin' jeans
And you know you can't forget about that Texas music scene
Give me a song about beer cans and whiskey bottles
Backroads, pasture parties
Loose women, tight jeans
The Texas country music scene
Bull fightin', bronc ridin'
Raisin' hell, done been to jail
The smoky bars I came to see
I need a song to play to get me through this day
If you wanna know the truth
All I really want
Is a song I can drink to
Oh, oh, oh, oh
Give me a song I can drink to
In "Song I Can Drink To," Koe Wetzel sings about the pressure to write a certain type of country music. The song starts with a conversation between Koe and a friend who tells him that he has a good tune but it's too slow, and all he writes about is heartbreak. In response, Koe asks him what kind of song he wants to hear, and his friend whispers, "Give me a song about beer cans and whiskey bottles, backroads, pasture parties, loose women, tight jeans, the Texas country music scene, bullfighting, bronc riding, raising hell, smoky bars I came to see. I need a song to play to get me through this day. If you wanna know the truth, all I really want is a song I can drink to."
The pressure to write about the stereotypical themes of Texas country music is evident throughout the song. Koe then tells the crowd at his first show that he's going to play them a song they've never heard before but they will know every word of it by the end of the night, and then breaks into a song about all the things his friend wanted to hear. The lyrics are a sarcastic take on the expectations placed on Texas country artists to write songs about specific topics, and how the genre has become formulaic.
Overall, the message is that Koe wants to make music that resonates with his audience while also staying true to himself. The song feels like a rejection of the pressure to conform to industry standards and instead focuses on creating music that is authentic and meaningful to him.
Line by Line Meaning
Well, my buddy once told me, "Boy, you got a good tune
My friend once complimented my music.
No, it ain't somethin' I can tap my boots to
But he didn't enjoy it because he couldn't dance to it.
You're playin' the guitar just too damn slow
He felt it was played too slowly.
Like songs about heartache is all you know"
He believed all my songs were about heartbreak.
I told him, "Oh man, I can't figure it out
I was at a loss for what to do.
Won't you tell me the kind of song you wanna hear about?"
So I asked him what kind of song he wanted to listen to.
And he looked at me strange and he said somethin' weird
But he responded oddly.
And this is what he whispered in my ear, oh whoa
He told me what he wanted the song to be about.
"Give me a song about beer cans and whiskey bottles
He wanted a song about drinking.
Backroads, pasture parties
And partying in rural areas.
Loose women, tight jeans
With women in tight clothing.
The Texas country music scene
About the country music scene in Texas.
Bull fightin', bronc ridin'
Also about rodeo events.
Raisin' hell, done been to jail
And causing trouble and getting in trouble with the law.
The smoky bars I came to see
All in the setting of a smoky bar.
I need a song to play to get me through this day
As a way to cope and have fun.
If you wanna know the truth
To be honest.
All I really want
What he truly desires.
Is a song I can drink to"
Is a song he can enjoy while drinking.
I got on stage, ready to play my first show
I got on stage for my first live performance.
I grabbed my guitar, reset the capo
I prepared my instrument.
Asked my band what they wanted to play
I asked my bandmates for input.
And I could tell by the fear and the look on their face
But they were afraid to make suggestions.
I told the crowd, "Here's a song that you ain't heard
So I decided to play the song my friend suggested.
But by the end of the night, you'll know every single word
And I promised the audience they would be familiar with it by the end of the performance.
To a song about beer cans and whiskey bottles
The song was about drinking.
Backroads, pasture parties
And partying in rural areas.
Loose women, tight jeans
With women in tight clothing.
The Texas country music scene
About the country music scene in Texas.
Bull fightin', bronc ridin'
Also about rodeo events.
Raisin' hell, done been to jail
And causing trouble and getting in trouble with the law.
The smoky bars I came to see
In the setting of a smoky bar.
I need a song to play to get me through this day
To have fun and cope through drinking.
If you wanna know the truth
To be honest.
All I really want
What he truly desires.
Is a song I can drink to
Is a song he can enjoy while drinking.
Give me a song about beer cans and whiskey bottles
Again, he desires a song about drinking.
Yeah, them backroads, pasture parties
And again, about partying in rural areas.
Oh, them loose, naughty women in them tight fittin' jeans
And specifically, about women in tight clothing.
And you know you can't forget about that Texas music scene
Reiterating the importance of the Texas country music scene.
Give me a song about beer cans and whiskey bottles
Again, he desires a song about drinking.
Backroads, pasture parties
Again, about partying in rural areas.
Loose women, tight jeans
Again, about women in tight clothing.
The Texas country music scene
Again, emphasizing the importance of this scene.
Bull fightin', bronc ridin'
Again, about rodeo events.
Raisin' hell, done been to jail
Again, about causing trouble and getting in trouble with the law.
The smoky bars I came to see
Again, in the setting of a smoky bar environment.
I need a song to play to get me through this day
To cope through drinking and have fun.
If you wanna know the truth
Again, to be honest.
All I really want
Again, reiterating what he truly desires.
Is a song I can drink to
A song he can enjoy while drinking.
Oh, oh, oh, oh
With a celebratory tone.
Give me a song I can drink to
Reiterating his desire for a drink-friendly song.
Writer(s): Koe Wetzel
Contributed by Bentley N. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Brandi
on Ragweed
Both the singer and the girl he loves miss Ragweed, a broken up a Red Dirt Country Band. They share this feeling.
The girl's mother has a low opinion of the singer as a person.
Not only the mother, but also the girl's second step-father does not like the singer either.
The girl has a quirky personality and is always silly and playful.
Despite her quirks and her mother's disapproval, the girl and the singer bond over their shared love for Ragweed.
The singer expresses a deep affection towards the girl and wants her to know how much she means to him.
The singer is attracted to the girl's eyes and smile, as well as her suggestive and vulgar language.
The singer believes his friends will not like the girl, but he himself finds it difficult not to love her.
The girl suggests that Oklahoma is better than where they are, but the singer is not interested in discussing it.
The singer and the girl have spent a lot of time drinking and doing drugs together, and the singer is surprised he has fallen in love with her.
The girl's step-father, who is unpleasant, also does not approve of the singer.
Another reiteration of the fact that the girl's step-father is unpleasant and does not like the singer.
Once again, the shared love for Ragweed remains a bonding point between the girl and the singer, despite their other differences and the disapproval of the girl's family members.