With just a month left before graduation at CSU, local Americana troubadour Taylor Shae has hit that phase of her senior year in college when everyone has an opinion on what she should do next.
But Shae knows what she wants to do; with four full-length albums under her belt at just 20 years old, the Longmont native wants to keep making music. Her new single, “Holding On,” is a battle cry for following your passion in a world that’s all too ready to tell you why you shouldn’t. You can stream or purchase the track beginning on April 9, but Shae will debut the song live at a limited attendance show at The Wheel House in Niwot on Saturday, April 10 as a fundraiser event for Rocky Mountain Music Relief, which will receive 100% of the proceeds to help support those in the music industry affected by the pandemic.
“I was getting a lot of advice from people about my future on a personal level, about the music industry, and I think I kind of realized that if I’m really passionate about music I just need to go for it,” Shae says over a phone call. “The chorus goes: ‘I’m holding on until the moment that it’s gone / Through the highs and the nights that are long.’ If you love something, you’ll do anything to keep it a part of your life no matter what challenges you face. But I think on a broader level, [the song] ties back to the pandemic. Everyone’s going through a tough time right now, especially the music industry. Everyone is holding on and staying hopeful about what’s to come.”
The uplifting track features three-part harmonies from Shae’s confident alto, which at turns alludes to powerhouse vocal inspirations like Nicki Bluhm and Grace Potter.
“Sometimes you see it / and then it’s gone,” Shae sings on the track. “Just when you need it / It’s hard to find / Thinking the path you’re on seems wrong / Will get your left behind.”
The single comes on the heels of Shae’s fourth album, Legend Keepers, released in October 2020. She plans to release more singles this summer that showcase new skills and moodier sounds.
“I think my music is going toward that alt-country, Americana roots blues sound,” Shae explains. “There’s an edgier, dustier sound — maybe this first single isn’t the best representation of that, but the stuff in the works is definitely incorporating more slide guitar. That was one thing I got to learn and practice over the pandemic that was kind of inspired by a little Larkin Poe and Robert Ranolph and, on the local level, A.J. Fullerton.”
6:30 p.m. Saturday, April 10, The Wheel House, 101 Second Ave., Suite B, Niwot. Tickets are $15 at Eventbrite: bit.ly/2PVrtGM
