FESTIVAL RECAP: Slade Coulter’s Big Damn Family Jam is Texas’s Best Family Reunion

In 2021, Slade Coulter started the Big Damn Family Jam.

It was two nights inside The Blue Light and featured performances from Coulter, Dalton Domino, Jacob Stelly, Braxton Keith, Austin Upchurch, Jordan Nix, and Parker Ryan. From what I can tell, it was a successful weekend. So successful that they brought it back in 2022 with one night inside and one night outside on Buddy Holly Avenue. The indoor Friday show featured Abbey Duncan, Parker Ryan, and Thieving Birds closing off the night while the outdoor show had performances from Cole Barnhill, Jacob Stelly, Coulter, and the legend Wade Bowen closing out the night.

That weekend was the first time I got to meet Slade and how I got introduced to the Honcho Music Group family. Owner and founder Dalton Domino was just as stoked to work with us as we were to work with them and he helped us put together my first giveaway as the Marketing Director for this station.

In that year, so much has happened both with Dalton’s artists and my relationship with them and their crews. Coulter put out a record, got engaged, and had a daughter. Stelly also put out a record and landed a slot on the At The Station Fest lineup, headlined by Zach Bryan. Parker Ryan had his song First on My List featured in a Billboard article. Jordan Nix has a killer EP out and the folks that aren’t listed here all have material recorded and ready to go whenever the time comes.

But something I didn’t fully realize was just how much bigger some of these artists got in a year. When I first saw this year’s lineup, it felt like it was missing a big name to stand above everything else rather than Treaty Oak Revival, Slade, and Stelly all sharing the top line. However, the crowds all of these artists pulled in were incredible to see. I don’t think the crowd Sunday night for Treaty Oak Revival’s performance ever stopped growing. Maybe they didn’t book bigger names for this year’s fest, but they definitely picked quality artists that hit the Lubbock niche right in the sweet spot and drew very well to this market.

Anyway, let’s get into the meat of this weekend. I’m gonna do this superlative style so that I can highlight everyone but not keep y’all here for hours. Luckily there are no worsts, so I’m glad I don’t have to worry about that. The superlatives for the weekend are as follows…

Best Double Threat: Travis Roberts

Winner of The Blue Light’s 2022 Songwriter Competition, Travis Roberts has been on a steady grind putting out killer songs and working on a new record in Arizona. I already knew he was a great singer and songwriter but his live show blew me away. I didn’t really get a chance to properly appreciate his opening set last November at Slade’s album release show but here, he excelled. The guitar trio is absolutely killer, the band is tight as a pickle jar lid, and his passion bleeds through on stage. I also have Roberts to thank for bringing Dalton on stage with him to play a song and making it possible for me to see Dalton sing for the first time since 2016 (was that really 7 years ago? …yikes). That wasn’t Roberts’ only contribution to the evening either. Before his set, Roberts and his band The Willing Few backed up Shelby Stone for one of if not her very first full band show ever. Roberts sang harmonies and ripped guitar solos while his band played along like they’d been playing with her for years.

Newcomer of the Year: Shelby Stone

Shelby is another artist that I didn’t get to fully appreciate during an opening set, mainly due to me arriving at the show she opened right as the last notes played. However, I got to talk to her and her boyfriend Aron for a while after the show in the middle of a group of buddies and I’ve gotten to know them pretty well since that show in February. I want to reiterate something real quick before I start diving in, this was one of if not her very first full band show. Got that down? Okay, good. Now mark my words. Shelby Stone is going to be a superstar. I’m not just saying this because she is my friend and I’m not just saying this because she is a Honcho artist. I’m saying this because she commanded that stage with the authority of a seasoned veteran, sang her ass off, and all of it was taken to the next level because of the band behind her. She blew the roof off of the place. Stone’s set was one of those sets that makes the Blue Light such a magical place. It was one of those shows that you stumble up to, hand over some odd amount of money, and just have your mind blown. I cannot wait for Shelby to have a record out and I cannot wait for her to start doing more full band shows.

Best Opening Set: Aiden Logsdon & the Outlaws

Aiden is another artist I’ve known for a little while but I’ve never had the chance to see play. I completely duffed a chance to see him on campus last week but didn’t feel too bad because I knew he’d be here. What I appreciate about Logsdon’s set the most is how well it kicked off the day. He wasn’t mismatched to anyone else playing after him, he didn’t try to steal the show and blow everyone off the stage, he just played a chill set and sang his songs and threw in a sick cover of Josephine by Southall and that’s all he really needed to win me over and get my day started off on the right foot. While his crowd wasn’t massive by any means, he definitely had some home show pull behind him. He’s a great guy, fun performer, and I hope I can see him again sometime soon.

Most Tonk: Braxton Keith

Braxton Keith tonks. He tonks hard. He has a killer voice, incredible stage presence, and he is so much fun to watch perform. He does all these super cool shuffles on stage, has amazing energy, and his sound was unlike anything else all weekend. His music has a lot of rockabilly and dancehall influence. The only thing I think he’s missing is some boogie-woogie piano to really take that sound home. Keith and his band, The Contraband, didn’t take their foot off the gas for their entire hour-long set. From the blazing performances of Honky Tonk City and an unreleased song called Quitting Time to the somber Cold Hard Steel and Sand to songs like Honky Tonk Crowd and Settle For A Beer that had the back of the crowd two-stepping like it was going out of style. If he can keep putting out quality material and keep up the momentum he has going right now, I think we’ll see Braxton Keith in Randall King’s spot soon as the new king of tonk.

Most Face Melting: Parker Ryan

I think at this point you should need to have a waiver signed before you see Parker Ryan play live because the things that man does to an electric guitar, viewer discretion is definitely advised. Parker Ryan runs a three-piece band and plays no BS rock and roll shows. I’m not gonna type it out for the hundredth time but to summarize, those are my favorite types of shows. This was another set that was all gas no breaks. From the opening notes of The Coldest Thing to the final wave goodbye and ringing out of The Train Song, Ryan delivered scalding riff after scalding riff, incredible solo after incredible solo, and he and his band are so friggin tight. The crowd ate all of it up and he left them wanting more. I don’t know how many Parker Ryan fans were in the audience when he started his set, but I guarantee there were a ton more by the time his set was over. Also, I just want to give him props for the Crocs on stage.

Band/Artist That Should’ve Been Outside: The Droptines

I think The Droptines are one of my new favorite bands. I can’t really categorize their sound but maybe that’s what makes them great. The closest thing I can think of is like, imagine if Uncle Lucius wasn’t mellow at all and were just a straight-up rock and roll band? Or maybe like if Nathaniel Rateliff sang for Reckless Kelly? I’m not sure about either of these but what I do know is The Droptines are fantastic performers and fantastic entertainers, and I think it would’ve been magical to watch them do a sunset set. Is their music quite the vibe for that? At times yes, and I think the rowdiness of being inside The Blue Light really helped matters but I think being outside and letting them play to more ears on a bigger stage would’ve made it even more fun.

Band/Artist That Should’ve Been Inside: Matt Williams

On the other side of the coin, while I did enjoy Matt Williams, I think his rowdiness and the energy he and his band put out would’ve been much better in the indoor setting. While I did enjoy what I was able to see of his set and will try to catch him again given the chance, I don’t think it stuck the landing as well as it could’ve just due to not that many people being on Buddy Holly Avenue while he was playing. Also, just throwing this out there. He teased a little bit of Slither by Velvet Revolver and if he were to cover that in full, not only would I have likely opened a pit, I can’t imagine what the beer showers and chaos inside would look like…assuming the people that go to his shows mess with Velvet Revolver. Do people even know about…you know what? This is a different topic for a different day and I don’t need to use this blurb to figure out if anyone cares about Velvet Revolver anymore. That first album is unbeatable though, like can you guys believe…

Best Vibes: Jarrod Morris

Ross Cooper playing this fest would’ve been really neat. Unfortunately, for one reason or another, he didn’t. However, Jarrod Morris hit that same sweet spot for me that Ross does. Cowboy songs and cowboy music under a setting sun, it just does not get much better than Jarrod’s set did. His music is straight-up western but not in a cheesy or gimmicky way, it feels super authentic. To me, it feels more Colter Wall western than Chancey Williams western (I’m still scarred from Chancey’s JAB Fest set, I’m sorry). While most of his music stayed in a mid-tempo kind of vibey lane, when it did pick up, it was just as great. Red Bandana springs to mind as an example of that. It wasn’t quite rock, but it got as close to it as he could. I was also really happy to find out that his music is just as great as his podcast which I cannot recommend checking out enough.

Most Unfortunate: Slade Coulter

From the second Slade and his band walked on stage, you could tell something was off and that was confirmed pretty quickly. The talkback mics that are only supposed to go to the band’s in-ear monitors went out over the PA, Clay Spidle’s guitar could not be heard for the first 10 minutes or so of the set while his mic was turned up very loud, as was Craig Tally’s bass. But the most unfortunate part of it all was just how disengaged most of the audience was. Tech football’s game was delayed that night and finished up about 3/4 of the way through Coulter’s set. Most people watching the game either inside The Blue Light or through the entrance to The Garden just went home instead of turning around and watching Slade’s show. What should’ve been a huge statement set in his hometown ended up falling kind of flat because of that and it sucks because despite the sound issues, Slade and his band killed it like they always do. His setlist always hits, the songs that sound good in the studio sound even better live, and the addition of John Laufenberg on fiddle and keys is so great for the band. While it’s not a massive change to the band’s sound, the little embellishments add so much. It helps that the crowd that did stick around and was dedicated to his performance made the most of it and really picked up the slack from other issues. I had a great time, everyone that stuck around had a great time, Slade just got dealt a tough hand.

And all issues could also easily be forgiven for two reasons. The first being how adorable it was to watch Slade bring his daughter on stage for her first show and holding her up above his head Lion King style, the second being…

Best Cover(s): Margaritaville by Jimmy Buffett and Alabama by Cross Canadian Ragweed, covered by Clay Spidle

Playing the day after Jimmy Buffett’s passing, Clay Spidle walked on stage after the encore break and started strumming a D chord on his guitar and without warning, started singing Margaritaville in tribute to Jimmy Buffett who passed away in the early hours of Saturday morning. The sing-along was glorious and it was a great way to start off the encore that he commanded. Once he got through the chorus, he let the chord ring out and went straight into Alabama by Cross Canadian Ragweed. Shelby Stone and Jarrod Morris joined the band on stage and it’s wild that the stage was still even standing at the end of it. Spidle absolutely killed it. It’s one of the covers the band has always kept in rotation, along with When You Were Young by The Killers and Midnight Train to Memphis by Chris Stapleton, but I think this one has always been the favorite. If it keeps ripping like this, it’ll continue to be the favorite.

Most Improved: Jacob Stelly

I don’t want this one to sound like I haven’t enjoyed a Stelly set until now, quite the opposite actually. I’ve loved him every time I’ve seen him but he just keeps on getting better and I don’t understand how. Each time I see him I leave telling myself, “There’s no way he tops that right?” and then he does. It also always blows me away just how much he contrasts himself. On stage, Stelly is a wild animal. Bouncing around, banging his head, at times it looks like Wild Mike from Barnyard is riding on his shoulders. But offstage, he is extremely chill and laid back. I went back to tell him, “Hi,” during the set change before he began and if you hadn’t seen him before, you’d have thought he was gonna put on a set like Jarrod Morris did from the way he was. The biggest improvement though, at least from last year, is that with his album Moondog out now, people are singing along to the songs and the crowds are a lot more receptive. Last year, playing a song like Get Busy or Make A Little Room For Me was hard to get into just because it wasn’t out. Now, opening with Get Busy kicked off his hour-long party with a bang and had the massive crowd moving. As did his performance of his new song Letting Go (Losing You), Fairy Tale, and his signature one-two punch closer of Johnny Walker -> Bad Bad Things. If I ever get tired of hearing those two songs back-to-back live, I need y’all to check on me and make sure I’m alright. I’ve seen Stelly twice this year already, I’ll see him two more times before the year is out, I cannot recommend y’all seeing him enough because he and his band are a force to be reckoned with.

While he and Shelby Stone are tied for my favorite sets of the weekend, it’s hard to say they were the best when…

Best Set of the Weekend: Treaty Oak Revival

The first time I saw Treaty Oak Revival was in October 2022 at JAB Fest. The band tried their hardest to make sure that stage wasn’t standing when they were done with it. The crowd, on the other hand, could not care less about what they were doing up there. I knew I wanted to see them again but wanted to wait until the time was right. In May of this year, I saw them at Troubadour Fest in College Station and it felt the exact same way to me. The band was incredible but given their slot on the lineup, I don’t think more than 500 people showed up to see them. So when the band was announced to headline this thing, I knew it was going to be the first time I got a true Treaty Oak Revival show experience. I’ve had high expectations for their set ever since I first saw the poster and they shattered them, probably two or three times over.

I genuinely think it should be illegal to be as good as Treaty Oak Revival is live. While their music can be basic and kind of overproduced at times in the studio, their songs live are completely different animals. A good example for me is Boomtown. Yes, I like the song but I don’t necessarily love the studio version of it. In the live setting, it comes with a proclamation from Canty each night, “This is the part of the show where we invite you to get as rowdy as you f*cking can.” As the drum kicked in, Canty showered the crowd with a water bottle and the crowd returned the favor with beer flying all over the place, people hopping on shoulders, lights flying all over the place, and heads moving up and down from people jumping. It’s one of my favorite performances I’ve seen of any song this year. It absolutely rocks, but that goes for the entire setlist.

One Time Thing, No Vacancy, Missed Call, opener Leaving Hell, and even a song that’s supposed to be more laid back like Postcard all were incredible songs live and it was benefitted by a crowd that stretched all the way to the entrance gate at the back of the festival near the entrance to the Cactus Theater. Also great in the setlist, the covers. Early on in the set, the band ripped through Blink-182’s All The Small Things which was an absolute blast to jump around and sing along to along the sides with my buddies. The band also covered 7 & 7 by Turnpike Troubadours and closed their show with a cover of Koe Wetzel’s Something to Talk About. I don’t know what venue Treaty Oak will play next in this city. The crowd size leads me to believe it’ll be at the Cook’s Garage Bus Barn. Regardless of where they play, it will not be a show to miss. See them while you can and while it’s cheap because when they’re selling out arenas, you’ll be able to say you were there when they were getting started.

Best Company: Every Artist, Photographer, Friend, and Band Wrangler I Saw and Got To Hang With

I already made a sappy thank you post on my Instagram but I want to say it here too. Would I have had a good time if I just came as someone who didn’t know anyone working this show, anyone in the crowd, and anyone on stage? It’s likely. But I truly think the reason I loved this year so much was because of how many people I got to see and hang out with for the first time in a long time along with getting to meet a bunch of people that I’ve looked up to for so long and/or geeked out over their work for forever. The hospitality and just how welcoming everyone I got to see was, that’s what truly stuck out to me most across all three days of this festival. It was such a great way to catch up too. One of my buddies, Nate Rivera, I hadn’t seen since we briefly met after Pecos & the Rooftops played at Cook’s Garage in February. He has been killing it and it made me so happy and proud to see him holding his own in the pit. I spent just about all of Friday and Saturday with Travis Fuentes who has been one of my biggest inspirations for so long and it feels wild to be able to call him a buddy. Another friend, Thomas Evans, got engaged before the Sunday show. Dalton made me bust out laughing just about every time I crossed paths with him, as did Travis Harrison, who’s Parker Ryan’s tour manager, and Harry Parma, a close friend of the Jacob Stelly crew. I got to meet Miller Carter, who is one of the most inspirational Instagram follows I have, meet Jaclynn Pierce who is constantly blowing my mind with her photos, see Luke Anderson, who works with Honcho and moved to Nashville to pursue an MBA, have a surprise visit from Paxton Waitman who tour-managed Slade for a while before Elic Goicoechea, who was also great to finally meet, took over the reigns. I could keep going on and on about this all day. Across the weekend, there were so many great talks, so many jokes cracked, and so many compliments towards each other flying in every direction. I mean this with no disrespect to any show I’ve covered before or anyone I’ve worked with or for in the past. This weekend was the first time where I truly felt like I belonged.

I cannot thank Dalton, Slade, Karley Brassell, and the entire Honcho team and community enough for letting Zach and I be a small part of your festival this year. Whether I’m working for this radio station or not, I hope I can be welcomed back next year.

Who Would Be Great Next Year?

While I know I’m not in charge of booking and I don’t have any pull in what would be good for this fest and what wouldn’t be. I also don’t know how expensive it would be to book some of these people so of course it is a dream list.

Here are a few artists I think would crush it on next year’s lineup:

• Kat Hasty
• American Aquarium
• The Wilder Blue
• Kaitlin Butts
• 49 Winchester
• Tanner Usrey

Most importantly, I hope the Friday night barnburner continues to be part of the tradition every year.

Until next year!