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Charleston singer-songwriter Tyler Boone and his band are driving home Boone’s departure from his previous pop-leaning sound with his new title track, “Jealousy,” the second single from his forthcoming EP. The single pulls no punches, packing harsh lyrics condemning a toxic, jealous relationship (not to mention a pretty killer guitar solo).
“This track was something I’ve been working on for quite awhile and after bringing it to the group in the studio for a live session, we finished writing it,” said Boone of the song. “We knew this was going to be one of our favorites.”
Recorded at Ocean Industries Studios in Charleston, SC and produced by Eric Rickert, “Jealousy” is out this Friday. The band will be releasing all five tracks as singles this summer and Jealousy will drop early this Fall. Stay tuned, and listen below to the premiere of “Jealousy.”
Writers – Tyler Boone, Eric Rickert, JR Spencer, George Baerreis
Engineer – Eric Rickert
Cover Art – Shannon Duke
Musicians:Drums, Percussion – Eric Rickert
Lead Vocals – Tyler Boone
Electric Guitars – Tyler Boone, JR Spencer
Keys – Ross Bogan
Bass – George Baerreis
Charleston is a city known for its rich history, beautiful architecture and tasty Southern delicacies—but recently, it is music that has taken the forefront and put the city on the map as a musician’s haven. As more and more local artists achieve nationwide notoriety, the city has become less of a tourist destination and more of a home to the creative community—and SUSTO is just one of the bands that can attest to that. The alt-country band is well known throughout the Charleston music scene and with slots in Americana Fest and Austin City Limits later this year, it’s evident that they won’t be a locals-only band for long. We sat down with Justin Osborne, chief songwriter and frontman of SUSTO, to talk their unique new release, upcoming tour and what it’s like to live in such a tight-knit, creative community.
Vinyl Mag: The music scene in Charleston has really kind of exploded the last few years and you guys have been a big part of that scene–what’s it like recording and living in a tight-knit city like that?
Justin Osborne: It’s really awesome. Especially the last three to five years, things have really taken off. People are moving to Charleston to play music, and it’s such a community of artists. And there are people who aren’t from Charleston that live there, so that’s really cool because they tell their friends from their hometowns what Charleston bands they’re listening to, and then their friends start listening to them, and then when we have out-of-town shows, it’s cool to see those new fans there.
VM: So of course I want to talk about your latest release—“Chillin’ on the Beach with my Best Friend Jesus Christ”—love the music video, it’s great—I haven’t heard anything like it—where did you get the idea to write a song like this? Inspiration?
JO: Well I’ve always wanted to incorporate the gospel sounds into songs, I love that sound. And I’ve always loved the idea of chilling on the beach with Jesus Christ. We wanted to release it but didn’t want to put in on an album, so we thought it would be a good idea to release it as a video in the summer. And I feel like even if you’re not religious, you can enjoy the music.
VM: Yeah, I feel like religious, non-religious—it’s relatable for all audiences.
JO: Exactly, and that’s what we wanted to achieve.
VM: Is this kind of appropriated religious language and imagery common in your writing?
JO: Well I’m not religious at all, it just kind of comes out. I think it comes from my background, growing up in a religious home. But it’s not intentional in the writing process, just part of my dynamic and some of the issues I want to discuss.
VM: So you have some exciting tour dates coming up, including Americana Fest in Nashville and then Austin City Limits—What are you looking forward to for these festivals? Are there any other venues you’re excited to play at?
JO: Yeah, really excited. Playing at these festivals has always been a dream of mine, and Austin City Limits is just a place where so many big names come, and even Americana Fest is going to be really exciting. We’re also playing the Mile of Music Festival in Wisconsin and I’m really excited for that. We’re just so happy to be out on the road, playing music and touring.
VM: And you’re in the process of working on your sophomore album, right? Any news on a release date?
JO: Yeah we’re really excited for it. It’s two years in the making so we’re excited for people to hear it. We actually just finished tracking it, and we expect to announce a release date in the next few weeks. But we’re really excited for it, really excited for fans to hear it. Excited to see what they think. I think fans of SUSTO will continue to be fans of our new material. It’s a little less country, but still SUSTO, has that gospel sound you could say.
VM: Well excited to hear it, thank for sitting down to talk to us!
This past weekend, Zac Brown Band’s Southern Ground Music & Food Festival returned to Charleston, SC, for two days of top notch music and exquisite artisan food. The lineup is impressive as it boasts the likes of Tedeschi Trucks Band, Thomas Rhett, Marshall Tucker Band, Hunter Hayes, Michael Franti & Spearhead, Kacey Musgraves, Sam Bush, and Bruce Hornsby & the Noisemakers (just to name a few).
Ingenuity can strike at a moment’s notice and creativity can show up in the most unexpected places. For Zac Brown, an average visit to get an oil change inspired what just might be the most unique dining and music experience in today’s festival scene.
In the early 2000s, through their shared love of music and food, friends Zac Brown and Chef Rusty Hamlin began a conversation that has since changed the standard of artist meet and greets and music event dining. “We just started talking about how we could make everything that we do a step above anything that’s ever been done before.” said Chef Hamlin. “How could we go out of the box and how could we give a better experience, whether it’s music, food, all the way down to the restrooms…what can we do to make everything amazing, and over serve and really, really bring our guests into a new experience?”
This new experience for guests became Southern Ground Music & Food Festival’s Stage Boxes. The perfect blend between chef-driven fine dining and the concert experience, attendees in these Stage Boxes enjoy gourmet meals designed and prepared by Chef Hamlin and other award-wining chefs all while practically sitting on the main stage.
“Zach actually came up with the stage box idea,” shared Chef Hamlin. “One day he was like ‘Rusty, I was sitting and I was getting my oil changed. You know you pull up in this auto shop and it’s all clean and nice and beautiful, and all the guys you look at are clean, but there are some crazy things going on underneath you, where they’re changing your oil, they’re getting all messy and it’s probably like 40 or 50 people running around down there just trying to get your oil changed as quick as possible.’” Thus, the Stage Boxes were born.
Set upon seven foot tall scaffolding, ten boxes, five jutting out from stage left and five on stage right, each holds four tables of six guests who will experience an incredible three-course meal each night of the festival.
Photo by Southern Reel
Influenced from Brown’s oil change experience, Brown and Chef Hamlin designed a dumbwaiter system at the center of each box. Unbeknownst to the attendees, “staff are running around down below them trying to plate up all these beautiful plates and sending them up underneath this 7ft scaffolding,” explained Chef Hamlin. “You push a button and all of a sudden, BOOM, you have the wait staff up there in the stage boxes and they’re very calm and quiet, they grab the plates and put them on the table and there’s amazing food. So people that have no idea what’s going on, which we don’t want them to. We want them to relax and enjoy their time, so that’s where the stage box idea came from.”
Helping Hamlin serve these guests is a lineup of renowned chefs including Chef RJ Cooper, a James Beard award winning chef who has has recently moved to Charlotte, NC, where he has been tapped to create a new culinary experience for the Charlotte Marriott City Center. Local Chef Craig Deihl with his passion for preserving meat. He is a founding member of the Butcher’s Guild, a network of meat professionals that promotes responsible butchering through education and community, and to date, he has produced over 90 types of charcuterie which have been prepared, stored and cured in-house at Charleston’s Cypress. Chef Patrick Owen’s southern roots run deep in his cuisine and he is no stranger to the Charleston food scene, as he grew up working his way through various kitchens in Charleston. He currently owns Langdon’s Restaurant + Wine Bar in Mt. Pleasant, earning the only AAA Four Diamond award East of the Cooper every year since opening, and Opal Restaurant + Wine Bar. Local Chef Mike Perez will also be joining this culinary lineup bringing his pasta expertise, along with members of the the Southern Ground Family, resident baker Nicole Crane with her gluten-free and allergen friendly baking, Chef Joshua Butler who has lent his culinary expertise as Executive Chef of Zac Brown’s restaurant, the Southern Ground Social Club, as well as with Zac Brown Band’s Eat & Greets, and Chef Collins Woods with his southern flare.
In addition to locally sourced talent to contribute to the Southern Ground experience, Chef Hamlin also prides himself on using regional ingredients, farm-to-tent (or Stage Box), if you will. Pork is big menu item this weekend and Hamlin will be cooking over 550 pounds of regional Carolina pork. Most of the produce will either be from South Carolina or Georgia, along with some fresh Florida strawberries.
“I would say that 90% of everything we are going to use, in hopes to feed somewhere between 5,000-6,000 people over the course of the weekend, is local,” stated Chef Hamlin.
Chef Hamlin will be serving two of his own dishes to Stage Box guests. On Saturday, he will be connecting with his Louisiana roots as he serves risotto balls stuffed with crawfish, tasso ham, and cheese, served with a local okra creole tomato stew. On Sunday, Chef Hamlin will be pulling 275 portions of burrata cheese which will be plated with a roasted balsamic strawberry and arugula pesto with crispy baguette. “Oh my gosh, think about this. Think about a beautiful burrata ball, just for you, you cut it open in the middle and it’s like beautiful amazing salty, ricotta cheese coming out of the middle of it, oh my gosh it’s gonna be amazing,” Chef Hamlin shared.
The Southern Ground Grub concession that will be open to the general public will also be headed by Chef Hamlin and will be turning out two dishes and a dessert by baker Nicole Crane. First is a family creole jambalaya recipe with chicken and andouille sausage. The second dish is a GochuJang Korean smoked pork shoulder, fermented Korean chili base marinated smoked pork shoulder with a green mango kimchi on top with a crispy wonton. And for a sweet ending, Crane’s gluten free, dairy free, and egg free oatmeal chocolate chip cookies.
For the past five years, Southern Ground Music & Food festival has been bringing top talent, quality dinning, and lifetimes of memories to Charleston. The attention to detail by Zac Brown and Chef Rusty Hamlin is unparalleled. For Chef Hamlin, the ability to share his art and interact with guests via Southern Ground experiences has been incredibly rewarding.
“There have been so many special moments,” Chef Hamlin shared. “And that’s why chefs do it. We do it because it’s very rewarding to us. We’re not going to be millionaires, I promise you that. So we do it for being rewarded by smiles and happiness, and making people happy by feeding them.”
This weekend, Zac Brown Band’s Southern Ground Music & Food Festival returns to Charleston, SC, for two days of top notch music and exquisite artisan food. The lineup is impressive as it boasts the likes of Tedeschi Trucks Band, Thomas Rhett, Marshall Tucker Band, Hunter Hayes, Michael Franti & Spearhead, Kacey Musgraves, Sam Bush, and Bruce Hornsby & the Noisemakers (just to name a few). Even more exciting are the gourmet concessions which will include offerings from favorite local Charleston restaurants.
The menus are set are set and Festival Foodie is excited to serve up a preview of some of this year’s food vendors at Southern Ground Music & Food Festival.
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BEES KNEES GRILL Bees Knees will serve classic grilled cheese, grilled cheese with bacon,and three signature gourmet sandwiches:
The Come Up – cheddar, avocado, bacon and ranch grilled on artisan sourdough The Fat Apple – granny smith apple, havarti, baby greens and a housemade champagne vinaigrette Kimchi Tempeh Reuban – lactofermented raw kimchi, three grain tempeh, russian dressing and swiss cheese on marble rye
Botanical Fresh Squeezed Lemonade: Elderberry Hibiscus Lavender Peppermint
Bees Knees encourages mixing flavors and getting creative! All of the herbs have a unique flavor and they all have lovely medicinal qualities as well, if you’re into that sort of thing.
The Come Up – Cheddar, avocado, bacon and ranch grilled on artisan sourdough
