Nick Coury

We are excited to come back to doing what we love to do after a brief hiatus due to personal illness. And what a power act to kick off our fabulous return to featuring great music weekly on Junior’s Cave. We present to our readers the music of NICK COURY.

Coury is making music that comes through sounding real, genuine, and honest. His approach to music is something that will have a mass appeal especially with regard to how he combines certain genres of music together. In this spotlight with our magazine, the lyricist explores the Indie Music Scene and his quest to share his fantastic music with others. Enjoy!

Isaac: Thank you for being a part of our weekly music interview spotlights.

NICK: Thank you for having me.
Isaac: Let’s get started. The Indie Music Industry is an amazing beast. Many music critics have stated that Indie Music is on the rise with many new performers being discovered each day. Do you believe that Indie music artists can rise to the level of stardom that their major music studio counterparts are able to now?

NICK: No, but I do believe that Indie musicians can achieve higher levels of "success" now than ever before due to social media and the way that more people are starting to realize there are a lot more artists than what they see on television or hear on the radio.

Isaac: What do you feel has been your biggest contribution you have made to Indie Music Industry thus far in your career?

NICK: I think I blur the lines between blues, rock, and hip hop so much that it turned itself into a different category of music altogether. That is why it is hard for the purest of any one genre to understand what I'm doing at first… I guess.



Isaac: I am interesting to know if you could go back and change anything about your own musical career, what would it be and why?

NICK: I would not change anything. I would just go faster and harder at the things I did so far. Everything I've done up to this point has made me who I am now.

Isaac: I am curious to know do you feel that the music industry as a whole is surrounded by an endless pool of undiscovered talents or overcrowded with mediocre performers.

NICK: I don't know how to respond to that without sounding negative. It’s easier and easier for anyone, regardless of what level of talent, to market themselves and so the end result is lots of different acts-most of which aren't necessarily the best that are finding their way to recognition due to social media. So yes, the market is polluted but there is still undiscovered talents that don’t get a chance, because most people want to hear what is being marketed on the radio. Anything sounding new takes a while to break through.

Isaac: Are you currently signed with any of the Indie Music Labels? If not, what are you looking for in any music label that you hope will complement your music?

NICK: I'm not signed to any label. And it doesn't matter what label- If its indie to major- What is important to know is what deal you sign and if you have creative control over your music. And having that control over your music is the key to staying happy as an artist. But I always thought Epitaph was up my alley as far as record labels go because it is a rock and punk label that signed some hip hop acts. I feel like they could be into taking a chance with me more than other labels.

Isaac: What do you feel has been one of the biggest challenges for you to bring your music to the masses?

NICK: The biggest challenge is to break the cycle of the average listener- my listener is someone who is more open to different musical ideas since I mash up rock, blues, and hip hop.

Isaac: One of the best attributes for any performer to possess is tenacity. What is your professional and/or personal drive that has made you continue to make great music over the years?

NICK: First it’s the love for music. It is just a non stop voice in my head that pushes me; most of the time it’s great that it pushes you but sometimes it’s there even when you don't want it to be. It is just something you have to do. Being bipolar -it’s how I put my thoughts to good use.

Isaac: How has living in your current city affected the way you look at the music industry?

NICK: Being in Chicago has heavily influenced my music by working for Buddy Guy at his blues bar Legends. Listening to Chicago blues influenced my overall sound and added to my love for underground hip hop. It helped me turn into the artist that I am today. For me, listening to blues in general, there is a different- more emotional level than you get from hip hop or everyday music. So I take that and apply it to my music lyrically-turning my style into modern blues even though there are hip hop elements.

It just feels like I'm introducing people to a new sound and feeling through my music which some people don't get at first because it is different than mainstream music. And at a certain point it c - Junior's Cave Online Magazine

Local Musician Nick Coury July 2010
The Hinsdalean
60 Seconds
Nick Coury

Hinsdale may be where 28-year-old Nick Coury lays his head to sleep at night, but the musician, producer, and performer can be found playing gigs in Chicago or doing interviews on radio programs like Q101's Chris Payne Show. His fans and followers are a diverse mix of 18- to 10 year olds who everything from blues to rap and hip hop. "My music is blues mixed with rap," he explained. "I'm pretty sure I'm the only out there doing it." Being in what he calls "music limbo" can make finding a performance venue a bit tricky. "My sound is unique, which makes it hard to get a gig in a blues club and hard to get one in a hip hop scene. I've mostly been performing at a place in the city called Elbo Room," he said. Coury move to Hinsdale in 2008 from Los Angeles with his wife Alida. He released his first album, "Alcohol, Cigarettes, & Ventriloquism in 2009, but his love for music and his road to success started decades earlier in Fall River, Mass. "I've been playing music since I was 10 years old," Coury said. "I remember being in school and a guy came to demonstrate the saxophone. He played the "Pink Panther" theme song and I was hooked." Coury quickly picked up the sax, guitar, piano, and drums and played in the school band throughout middle and high school. He and his brother, Dan, and two cousins then formed a band. "We played metal and rock for about six years before I went solo," he said. "I just got to a point where I didn't want to have to rely on anyone else, so I started writing and recording all my own stuff." After leaving Massachusetts, Coury moved to Miami where he worked in local commercials and played in the cover band "Two for the Show." During that time he auditioned for a reality show called "Amish in the City" which took Amish people and big city folks and put them in a house together in Los Angeles. Coury made the move west and said the show was quite an experience. "It was entertaining but horrific at the same time," he said. "I mean having cameras in your face 24 hours a day is not the norm." After a few years of the music scene in California, Coury and his wife chose to move back in the Chicago area where his music could flourish. "My wife's family is in La Grange and we just wanted to get away from big city life for a bit," he said. "I'm definitely the loudest one on the block around here." With his first album completed, Coury hopes to begin producing other musician's work. He just found his own production company, Presocratic Entertainment. "I'm trying to make a living off the music," he said. Chicago has a really good hip-hop scene and blues scene. I hope to eventually work with some other artists."
-by Christine Cuthbert - The Hinsdalean

So I have had the chance to review hip hop and rap albums in the past, normally for artists that have this sort of sound with either a really contemporary pop/electronica type of vibe or a really old school sound. However, on this occasion, we find Nick Coury, a rapper that knows how to rock.

Clare Burrito Says I’m Going To Hell is a whole entertaining, fun, and catchy record. Beats are changed by real instruments, such as drums, piano and some guitar that make every song catch your attention in less than an instant.

“Reintroduction” kicks off this record with some freaky, awesome piano that gives a special touch to the track and prepares you for what’s coming next; “Tug of War” and “Jumpsuit” have a lot of great gospel in them with this sound that might remind you of groups like Outkast and musicians like Timberland.

In “Baddest Clown,” he takes the famous theme song from The Matrix and uses it to his advantage, with some brilliant lyrics. “Gutter Punks” is just mind blowing, full of powerful guitar riffs that go from hard rock to funk. It’s like Kid Rock, but way better.

“SSRI” starts with such an amazing riff that turns into this bluesy funk type of song that proves what this guy is made of.

“Shoot The Messenger,” “Bump The Classic,” “This, Inside Out,” and “Halloween Night” each have their own unique style, but also pretty much some of the sound that we have been mentioning throughout the review. They are the perfect bridge to the final track.

“Clare Burrito” has cool sort of rock organ, incredible riffs, lyrics that fit perfectly with the track, and a background chorus that gives such an epic vibe to the track. It’s dramatic, it’s intense, it’s amazing.

In conclusion, we stand before an amazing artist. Kanye West, 50 Cent, Eminem, Wiz Khalifa, Nas, Jay Z? Please! If this guy makes it to the mainstream, then all of them will be in big trouble.

[Rating: 5/5]
Review by RJ Frometa

Edited by Marion Lougheed - Vents Magazine

Interview with Chris Payne - Q101