Dylan Sneed
Gig Seeker Pro

Dylan Sneed

Hartsville, South Carolina, United States | SELF

Hartsville, South Carolina, United States | SELF
Band Folk Singer/Songwriter

Calendar

This band has not uploaded any videos
This band has not uploaded any videos

Music

Press


""Dylan Sneed show a 'Bon Voyage' party""

HARTSVILLE, SC --

Before he heads to the Netherlands, Hartsville singer-songwriter Dylan Sneed wants to give his adopted home of Hartsville a special going-away present.

Sneed will host “Go Dutch with Dylan” at the Black Creek Arts Center on Aug. 27. There will be two full-band performances at 7 and 10 p.m.

In the spirit of going Dutch, each ticket sold will count for two seats. Tickets are $20 apiece.

Several special ticket packages are being offered, too. The $35 package includes two tickets and two copies of Sneed’s latest CD, “Texodus.” For $40, the package includes two tickets and either two “Texodus” T-shirts or two authentic limited edition “Go Dutch with Dylan” posters. The $75 “Kitchen Sink” package includes two tickets, two CDS, two T-shirts and two posters.

Sneed, who relocated to Hartsville in 2008 after living in Dallas, recorded “Texodus” last year with five friends in a 100-year-old farmhouse in the Lowcountry of South Carolina. The 14 songs on the CD, which includes “The Garden,” “Midnight Promenade,” “Climb This Wall” and “Under The Sheets” were recorded just in five days.

Sneed has received critical acclaim for his work. Patrick Wall of Shuffle Magazine said “Texodus” firmly establishes Sneed as a strong Americana songsmith.

The Dallas Observer described Sneed’s music as “the best side of true Americana: music of passion and skill that can move an audience with a whisper or a roar.” Kevin Oliver of the S.C. Free Times said “Sneed’s songs give a contemporary spin to the Lone Star country and folk of Guy Clark, Steve Earle and others, coming out more like the acerbically literate North Carolina songwriters Jonathan Byrd or Malcolm Holcombe.”

The recording session was paid for by funds raised through a website where fans pledged money to support the session. All told, his fans contributed $8,000, which more than paid for the project.

On his website, Sneed said he recently completed his longest single tour to date this summer. From June 2 to July 13, he traveled more than 9,300 miles, playing shows in 12 states. “Texodus” was released while he was staying in Portland with a songwriter friend.

“I came home weary, but I also came home with a new CD,” Sneed said.

Days after his return to Hartsville, Sneed stepped up to the microphone and performed at The Midnight Rooster Coffee Shop, where he hosts a monthly open mic night.

For information, visit www.dylansneed.com or www.facebook.com/dylansneed. - Hartsville Messenger


""My opinion of the album rises with each listen!""

So one of the albums that's been in heavy rotation on the iPod over the last few weeks is Dylan Sneed's album Texodus. His name caught my attention a couple of weeks ago when I was browsing the Roots Music Report. His 2007 EP release No Worse for the Wear is currently at number 40. "Texodus" the opening track of the album hooked me from the acoustic guitar intro and then came the really great lyrics and oh, well, my opinion of the album rises with each listen! Sneed is a native of Texas and lived and worked there up until 2008 when he moved his base of operations to a 100-year-old farmhouse in the low country of South Carolina. While he was in Texas he released four albums and EPs and The Dallas Observer praised his 2007 EP No Worse For The Wear as “one of the best local releases of the year.” and the Fort Worth Weekly dubbed Sneed's fourth release "epic."

But back to Texodus which was recorded in  a five day session in mid-April 2010. Dylan and a group of five friends worked day and night tracking the 14 songs that comprise the album. The amazing thing about the production is that Dylan had raised the money for the recording project over the previous two months through the website Kickstarter.com. Those fans who supported his career through those early years pledged 120% of the budget, as Dylan raised over $8,000 from donations on and off the website. From his Myspace page here's what some folks are saying about his music:

"the best side of true Americana: music of passion and skill that can move an audience with a whisper or a roar.” - The Dallas Observer

"Sneed’s songs give a contemporary spin to the Lone Star country and folk of Guy Clark, Steve Earle and others, coming out more like the acerbically literate North Carolina songwriters Jonathan Byrd or Malcolm Holcombe."   -Kevin Oliver of the SC Free Times

and the one I like the best:

"a sober Townes Van Zandt" (SC Free Times).

So as I'm listening to the album now to come up with my top tracks, once again it's all of them. Sneed is a terrific songwriter who knows how to turn a phrase and plays a mean acoustic guitar. So check out "Midnight Promenade" or "Climb the Wall" but don't miss "Selfish Boy"  or "Texodus" which may just hook you like it did me! Oh now "The Garden" is on that's a good track, too! Love the line:

"like I found the door and lost the key at the same time"
- No Depression


"Favorite Local Music of 2010"

Dylan Sneed, Texodus: I still don’t know exactly why Dylan Sneed chose to move from Texas to South Carolina, but since it resulted in this fine set of acoustic-based tunes, I’ll quit asking and just enjoy the music that came out of the transition. - Music That Matters


"Top 10 Albums of 2010"

Two years ago Dylan Sneed packed up his SUV in Texas with all of his belongings and took off for Hartsville, SC. What came out of it was Texodus, 12 wonderfully crafted songs recorded in a 100 year old farmhouse in the country of South Carolina. - Scene SC


""[Sneed's] new home state is artistically richer for his presence.""

The genesis of Dylan Sneed‘s new album Texodus came out of his relocation from Dallas, Texas to his current home base of Hartsville, South Carolina–no, I have no idea why he’d want to move there, either–and cryptically delivered lines like “The leaving is the coming/the dusk, the dawn” from the album’s title track don’t shed much light on the decision. One thing’s certain, however–his new home state is artistically richer for his presence.

Sneed is a mostly plain-spoken observer, the line quoted above notwithstanding, combining the occasional revelations of John Prine with the depth of emotion in John Gorka or Pierce Pettis‘ best work. He’s not afraid to have a little fun in the folk/acoustic framework, either–there’s a cover here of “Girls Just Want to Have Fun” (written by Robert Hazard, made famous by Cyndi Lauper).

The “New Folk” sounds of artists such as Gorka or Pettis are a good starting point for the laid-back vibes of this recording, which includes sympathetic piano, bass, and drums along with some fiddle and the haunting backing vocals of Haley Shaw.

There are lyrical gems sprinkled throughout, such as “You’re never really laughing if you've never really cried,” from the upbeat “Selfish Boy” or, “Pregnant with the weight of things we will not say, the truth is like a dancing firefly,” from “Keep You Still,” and Sneed has a knack for turning even the most overdone concepts into a good song, as on the ‘I want to love you but you’re not letting me in’ song, “Climb This Wall.”

The more these songs insinuate themselves into the ears of this lifelong South Carolinian, the more I’m glad that Sneed chose to make that trek from Texas; here’s hoping the next disc celebrates him staying put. - Music That Matters


"Comparisons to Townes, Dylan, Avett Bros., Cory Branan, Joe Pug"

A singer/songwriter from Hartsville, Dylan Sneed is a relative newcomer to our humble state, having moved here from Texas about two years ago--hence the name of his latest record, Texodus. Recorded in a 100-year-old cabin in the Lowcountry in just over a week and paid for entirely by donations given prior to recording, this largely acoustic album has a sparse feel, with only the occasional haunting string part, reverb-laden piano line or vocal harmony coloring the tunes. This has the advantage of both echoing Sneed's strength as a solo performer live as well as keeping the focus on the songs themselves. Sneed is a powerful poetic lyricist, and his wisdom and wordplay seem to drip from every line. So while the songs on the new record are deeply personal reflections about his exodus from Texas and life on the road, they end up being just as much about the universal theme of leaving home and then finding it again. Sneed generally draws quick mentions of Townes Van Zandt and Bob Dylan as likely influences, his youthful energy combined with a sound that feels both old and new puts him more in line with The Avett Brothers, Cory Branan, and Joe Pug. - SC Free Times


""No Worse for The Wear EP was one of the best local releases of 2007.""

After a whirlwind national tour opening up for and playing alongside Kristy Kruger, Dallas-based singer/songwriter Dylan Sneed will make his first local appearance in quite some time at Bend Studio this Saturday.

Seems that being out on the road with the talented Kruger really made quite an impression on Sneed: "The tour was fun, tough, inspiring and exhausting," says Sneed. “Kristy and I have already collaborated since returning to Dallas and she’s such a great musician.”

Stops on the tour that began right after SXSW included a show in Virginia where the duo opened for former Verve Pipe frontman Brian Vander Ark.“He really took a shine to us and we may be doing some touring with him in the fall,” says Sneed.

Kruger, Sneed and drummer Richard Hewett also recently cut a version of Johnny Cash’s “Folsom Prison Blues” that Sneed says he's very excited about: “Kristy’s take is in a minor key and is very haunting.”

Hopefully, now that he is back home, Sneed can start work on an album of his own. 2007’s No Worse for The Wear EP was one of the best local releases of the year, and playing with Kruger, one imagines, can only expose Sneed’s quality songwriting to a wider audience. He'll only gain more exposure while opening for Beth Wood this Saturday.

“Bend is a great room for me to play," Sneed says, "so I am trying to get as many people there as possible.”

Since the venue only holds around 80 listeners, that shouldn’t be to tough. --Darryl Smyers - DallasObserver.com


"“Music that evokes Paul Simon, James Taylor, Townes Van Zandt and Woody Guthrie.”"

“...music that evokes the spirit of greats like Paul Simon, James Taylor and more roots-oriented acts like Townes Van Zandt and Woody Guthrie.”

read the full preview here: http://www.clarionledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071011/ENT07/710110339 - The Clarion Ledger


"“His cover of Cyndi Lauper's 'Girls Just Want to Have Fun' is sheer delight.”"

“Whether live or recorded, Sneed is a Texas troubadour worth hearing on stage no matter how large or small.”

“His performance in the small alcove at Pot Pie [Kansas City, MO] demonstrated his soft-spoken wit, elegant and fragile songs exploring the world around him, and a fine ability to pick angelic melodies on guitar.”

“His cover of Cyndi Lauper's "Girls Just Want to Have Fun" is sheer delight.”

Read the full article here: http://www.presentmagazine.com/full_content.php?article_id=826&full=yes&pbr=1 - PresentMagazine.com


""Sneed’s approach to songcraft is graceful.""

“No Worse for the Wear...is hands down [Dylan’s] best effort yet.”

“The disc is a strong, clear-eyed collection of snapshots of life and faith sans conventional godly sledgehammer devices. Sneed’s approach to songcraft is graceful and no doubt heavily inspired by Paul Simon, Woody Guthrie, and a few other giants of hearty folk music. His saccharine-free lyrics and honey-grained vocals are what distinguish Sneed’s handiwork as his own and keep it from being the least bit imitative.”

“Even though No Worse for the Wear is an e.p., it’s epic. Listening to it gives you the feeling of peering into an articulate, worldly person’s thoughts as he contemplates Big Ideas.”

Full text available here: http://fwweekly.com/content.asp?article=6177 - Fort Worth Weekly


""Earthy candor of The Band and Townes Van Zandt""

Looking satisfied but weary, local singer-songwriter Dylan Sneed sits in a coffee shop near his home in Lake Highlands and talks about his escape from the corporate world.

"Man, I didn't even know what my job was," Sneed says about his two years spent writing instructional manuals for AT&T. "Ninety percent of it was kind of like a monkey's job."

Sneed grew up in Austin and attended his parents' alma mater, Abilene Christian University, before making his way to Dallas in 2002. He'd been singing and writing songs since he was 16, but he wanted to put his Advertising/Public Relations degree to some use.

"It was great to have financial stability, but the job ate away at the creative part of me," Sneed says.

Once AT&T downsized, Sneed gratefully accepted a severance package and began to commit all of his time to music. He played bass with, among others, country up-and-comer Aaron Watson but decided to start recording his own songs.

"In the year and a half that I have been a professional songwriter, I've done 10 times the work that I did in an office," Sneed says, sounding like a man reminiscing about an escape from prison.

Sneed's newest release, No Worse for the Wear, is his third recording, following his debut, Dylan's Need (which he put out when he was a sophomore in college and now disdains), and the more recent live effort, What I Thought.

The new EP is by far his best release as it incorporates elements of the literate emotionalism of Paul Simon and James Taylor and the earthy candor of The Band and Townes Van Zandt. Sneed's songs are inherently spiritual with narratives that pose some big questions about devotion and relationships, both personal and mystical.

"Faith is a central theme in my music," he says, "but I can't stand the term 'Christian music.'"

Songs such as "Look Inside" and "What I Love, What I Fear" are richly arranged odes to finding one's way in this world, be that through religion or just having a place to lay one's head.

"If it's about Jesus, people can write about Jesus, and if it's about a girl, it's OK to write about that too," he says.

"People like labels and things easily packaged," he adds. "My music is full of gray areas."

And it is exactly these gray areas that make Sneed's music stand out. Spiritual without being sanctimonious, Sneed's songs are about the doubt that must accompany all faith.

"I always wonder why there are so many people who want to label God, who want to put God in a box."

By Darryl Smyers
Published: August 23, 2007 - The Dallas Observer


""A-list tunesmith.""

“No Worse for the Wear, Dylan Sneed's recently released EP, features quiet but intense country/folk that comes across like Leo Kottke covering Paul Simon.”

“Rich and rewarding, Sneed's songs have a sly humor and an offbeat charm that makes their religious underpinnings all the more convincing.”

“’...Sneed's way with melody and phrase sets him firmly in the A-list of area tunesmiths.”

“...Sneed represent[s] the best side of true Americana: music of passion and skill that can move an audience with a whisper or a roar.”

Read the full review here: http://www.dallasobserver.com/2007-08-09/music/dylan-sneed-collin-herring-and-slider-pines/ - Dallas Observer


""Enjoyably wise revelations.""

When the folks at ResonateArtsand-Media.com kick back and turn things down from a hectic week of production, they look, naturally, toward the arts.

This week, the staff and volunteers of the Smith County based Web and media ministry - looking for an alternative to high-cost music venues - sat down at a "living room concert," a trendy grassroots venue throughout the country that allows concert-goers to avoid the hassles of ticket purchasing, parking headaches and noisy places filled with distracted patrons.

Last week's living room concert at Resonate featured Dylan Sneed, 29, a traveling minstrel from South Carolina who makes his, well, living standing in someone's home and singing for his lunch. If that sounds like a hard row to hoe, Sneed said that as a musician there is little to compare to the experience of being in direct contact with an audience, even if the crowds aren't huge and the money can sometimes be scarce.

"If a musician hasn't done a living room concert, it's the best venue they've never played," he said. "They don't understand how great it can be. It's a venue friendly to the musician because of a lack of pretense on the part of the performers and the focus on music. You sit down, slow down and let this thing happen. It's a wonderful spirit created with the audience and even between fellow performers."

Musicians thrive in the LR concert environment with each other, he said.

"The cooperation between the performers cuts out the competition mindset so prevalent in music merchandising," he said. "There's a real community feeling everywhere I travel between the musicians, and that's an attitude worth working toward."

Sneed has played venues in the past where dinner, drinks and dialogue distracted from the music - and his honest, soothing style and penetrating lyrics. The ambience of a mood-lighted living room where a pin drop could be heard can't be matched, he said.

"Don't get me wrong, I used to be offended when people would talk over my songs, but I've come to realize the audience doesn't owe me anything," he said. "A living room concert, though, is a wonderful opportunity to be heard. It's for people who love music and who really want to pay attention."

Sneed has been on his self-booked "Home Sweet Home" tour with fellow performer David Ramirez since May, playing LR concerts in Austin, Dallas, Magnolia and will move on to Memphis and Nashville Tenn., Birmingham, Ala., and Atlanta, Ga. He plays "hundreds of shows a year" and travels constantly. The low-key concerts are a good idea that is taking hold, he said.

"Living room concerts are a growing trend and a lot is going on near Tyler over in Dallas where I just played," he said. "There are a lot of people like me out there, finding out how good this is."

Sneed said a good show has about 30-35 people attending, but his Dallas gig had upwards to 50. The musicians make "gas and lunch money" by suggested donations, and sales of CDs and T-shirts. The grassroots nationwide trend in LR concerts was even reflected in a feature in the San Diego Union Tribune on Sunday.

"San Diego is a rock 'n roll town," the Tribune article said, but more and more musicians are turning to "thrilling them softly" in down-home house concerts where the message and the music are uncluttered.

How good is the music at a Living Room concert? If Dylan Sneed is the template, it's excellent. Sneed evokes rare glimpses into life's most pertinent, thoughtful and melodic questions with grace, style and enjoyably wise revelations, something a lot of performers try to manufacture, but can't. Dylan's fingers entice a masterful musical-stream-of-consciousness sound from his guitar, reflecting the audio equivalent of an honest man holding a lantern on a clear or sometimes murky path, laughing, crying and musing as he travels.

What's best is the undistracted and close-up view of a dedicated, professional-level musician playing his heart out to people who want an honest, musical conversation. Dylan's extension into the musical realm, playing past his lyrics, rounds out a satisfying and even precious musical experience.

All this for a donation and selling some CDs. But best of all, Dylan hangs around to talk to everyone for as long as they like. His life story should be an "On the Road" saga.

"I drive all over the country in an old Toyota," he said. "There's not a ton of money in this, but I get to do what I want to do, and sing what I want to sing, and how people many get to do that? I'm just grateful I get the opportunity to do it."

Resonate staff members consider themselves dedicated, low-key missionaries who use their production skills "in a growing, positive environment" to outreach to the Tyler community and the world. Their current project is a promotional video being donated to the East Texas Rescue Mission. - The Tyler Morning Telegraph


"Compared to Guy Clark, Steve Earle, Jonathan Byrd, and Malcolm Holcombe"

This Texas troubadour has become something of a road warrior since giving up the office cubicles to follow his songwriting muse a few years back. A previous tour was dubbed “Texodus” — in honor of the tremendous change in lifestyle (and a concurrent move to the Palmetto State), perhaps — and last month he teamed up with another singer-songwriter, David Ramirez, playing only house concerts for several weeks. Sneed’s songs give a contemporary spin to the Lone Star country and folk of Guy Clark, Steve Earle and others, coming out more like the acerbically literate North Carolina songwriters Jonathan Byrd or Malcolm Holcombe. - SC Free Times


""Alongside the likes of Joe Pug.""

Two years ago, Dylan Sneed quit his desk job in Dallas, packed his belongings into his car and set out to find a new home. He landed in Hartsville, and Texodus, released earlier this year, recaps Sneed’s relocation efforts. Recorded in a rundown house in small-town Ehrhardt, S.C., Texodus is Americana the way it should be: Simple, honest and elegant without any pretense. An able guitarist and a gifted storyteller, Sneed possesses the erudite literacy of Cat Stevens and the temper of a sober Townes Van Zandt, imbuing his tunes with dust-bowl poignancy and small-town sentimentality. What Texodus lacks in polish, it more than makes up for in heart and wisdom, placing Sneed alongside the likes of Joe Pug as Americana’s best up-and-coming songwriters. With Hannah Miller, who’s reportedly playing her last Alien Carnival house concert as a Capital City resident; Miller’s been eyeing a move to Nashville for some time. - SC Free Times


""Strong Americana songsmith.""

In 2007, Dylan Sneed quit his corporate job to make music full-time; a year later, he left Texas and eventually settled in Hartsville, S.C., where he's made his living as a songwriter ever since. Indeed, the opening couplet of Texodus, Sneed's own Odyssey chronicling his journey, sets the scene: "City lights in back of me/as distant as eternity," he sings in a tender tenor over a simple-yet-elegant finger-picked guitar pattern, "From where I'm going/from where I've always been." Though he hails from central Texas and has always possessed the erudite literacy of Cat Stevens and the timbre and temper of a clearer-minded Townes Van Zandt, the quaintness of the Carolinas suits Sneed just fine. Recorded in a tiny house in even tinier Ehrhardt, S.C., Sneed assembled a cadre of friends to flesh out his earnest Americana tunes; what Texodus lacks in polish, it makes up for in heart and wisdom, and firmly establishes Sneed as a strong Americana songsmith. - Shuffle


"A House Concert With Dylan Sneed"

This past weekend I attended my first house concert. Some friends from my church hosted singer-songwriter Dylan Sneed in their home, and we sat in their basement listening to his music and stories which ranged from writing a song about his town's new sidewalk to driving around all night looking for a house with a precarious GPS and doing his taxes at IHOP at 3:00 in the morning. His gift with words had everyone at ease, yet attentive.

After the performance, we all hung out on the porch chatting and getting to know the artist. Dylan Sneed is a Texas troubadour who gave up his office job to pursue music full-time, and he hasn't looked back since. He now makes his home in North Carolina, and though he says he didn't move there for a girl, he wrote a song about her anyway (alas, it didn't work out).

Much of the discussion was centered around house concerts -- what they entail, how they compare to regular shows, why artists like them, and how to go about setting one up.

Sneed was very enthusiastic about the house concert concept.  He's been doing quite a few of them lately, and he said that, compared to a typical stage show, house concerts "kick their ass."

The idea is that the atmosphere of an in-home concert allows for an intimate connection between artist and audience. There are only a small number of people present -- usually between 15 and 30 -- so you get the chance to interact with the performer during the show and hang around and talk afterward.

Sneed requested that we do him a favor: "After you go home, if you could just tell one person about house concerts," he said.  However, he stressed that we please refer to the event as a concert, not a party.  A status update I'd posted on Facebook clued me into one of the reasons why when a friend of mine replied, "What is a 'house party?' House dance music or a concert in a house?" Even though I'd written concert instead of party, my friend made the leap to "party" on her own.  Also, the term itself was obviously confusing.  Sneed explained that when people think of a party, they envision a noisy, chatty atmosphere. At a party guests come and go as they please and mingle from room to room.

A house concert, though, is meant to be about the music. While the audience is welcome to talk with the performer during the show, it's not a free-for-all.  You're there to listen and enjoy the songs, up close and personal.

What's interesting to me, though, is that the "party" aspect can be what draws the crowd to the show.  Neither my wife nor I had ever heard of Dylan Sneed before Saturday night's performance -- we went because our friends invited us to their home (and I also know and trust their taste in music).  The same was true of the other guests as well.  That's not to say that we didn't enjoy the show -- on the contrary, we had a great time and we left as fans of Sneed's music -- it's just not the reason we attended.

So the tricky part of hosting a house conert seems to come down to its marketing. If you promote the event as a "party," you invite your friends and risk people showing up who aren't interested in the music. If you promote the event as a "concert," you are likely to have to step outside your circle of friends to reach the artist's fan base and risk whatever might come from having a bunch of people you don't know in your home.

With enough planning, though, it seems like it shouldn't be too difficult to pull off.  Our host told us that when Sneed approached him with the idea (they were old friends who'd played in a band together years ago in Texas), his initial impulse was to say "no." However, his curiosity piqued, he came up with a list of questions for Sneed as to how it would work, and Sneed had a ready-made FAQ that answered every one of them.

I can't say how much work my friends went through in setting up the concert, but it was a pretty low-key event. It seemed to me that anyone with enough space in their house could probably pull it off if they wanted to.

My question was how the money works out.  Our invitation stated that we were requested to bring a $10 donation for Sneed.  It's worded that way, I was told, for tax reasons.  If guests are required to pay to attend, then the host's home is technically being used as a business, thus the use of the term "suggested donation." However, if guests decide not to donate, the performer's cost is covered by a guarantee from the host.

So hosting a house concert is a risk, but it's one that can turn out with great reward if you take care when you organize it.  The experience was totally different than what you get in a typical stage environment. It was closer and more personal. As such, it was more than just a concert, it was an intimate evening with an artist in a down-to-earth environment. - AL.com


""Americana the old-fashioned way.""

In August 2008, singer/songwriter Dylan Sneed played his last show as a resident of Dallas.

Not really living anywhere since, Sneed has crisscrossed the country playing with just about anyone in just about any venue. During this jaunt, Sneed has written a bevy of songs, some of which have found their way onto Texodus, Sneed's debut full-length effort.

Recorded in a rundown, remote cabin in South Carolina with a ragtag collection of capable sidemen, Texodus is Americana the old-fashioned way: It's folk and country that sacrifices polish for heart and honesty. Over the course of its dozen cuts, Texodus plays out as a narrative about escaping the corporate rat race and discovering America by embracing the folks in the ditches. "City lights in back of me, distant as eternity" sings Sneed on the opening title cut, introducing the listener to the upcoming narrative.

On his 2007 EP, No Worse For The Wear, Sneed came across as a likeable, sensitive type who may have listened to a few too many Cat Stevens records. On Texodus, Sneed's scope and vision are much broader. Drawing inspiration as much from the actual terrain of the country as from any musical influence, Sneed has created an autobiographical song cycle that joyfully reeks of miles spent on the road, looking for answers. And he's even found a few. - The Dallas Observer


""Like a sober Townes Van Zandt.""

Hartsville-via-Dallas songwriter Dylan Sneed might not be a household name like Lyle Lovett, Guy Clark or Robert Earl Keen, but he’s already written some pretty great tunes in the tradition of the best Texas songwriters. Like a sober Townes Van Zandt, Sneed twists words into wry portraits of his own emotional landscape, but a song such as “Look Inside,” from his 2007 EP No Worse for the Wear is far from a still life. Local songsmith and guitarist Kenley Young offers up his own emotive arrangements from 2009’s Standard Candle, and Adam James opens. - SC Free Times


"What I Thought"

"...What I Thought by Dylan Sneed would be a good album to add to your collection."

"...[Dylan] definitely targets listeners who can be lifted and inspired."

Full text available here: http://www.pegasusnews.com/news/2006/jul/07/cd-review-dylan-sneeds-iwhat-i-thoughi/ - Texasgigs.com


"General Musings"

January 6, 2008

“...responsible for one of my most favorite releases of 2007.”

“...every bit of production on the EP [No Worse For The Wear] is done with the perfect amount of understated flair.”

Read the full post here: http://www.bocatinta.com/bt/?p=518 - BocaTinta.com


"No Worse For The Wear"

“...the charming ‘What I Love, What I Fear’ especially does a good job in demonstrating Dylan’s need to reclaim the life of someone not tethered to a desk by providing an atmosphere that feels as if the song could subtly float away into space at any moment. Another standout, ‘What I Thought,’ features a more stripped sound that focuses instead on the vocals and the lyrics. It’s in there that another indicator of needing something bigger lies, especially in earnest and introspective quips like: ‘I thought they’d be callin’ me a rock star by now’ and ‘Life’s not what I thought it’d be / It is just what it is.’”

“...No Worse For The Wear is a solid, accessible effort that suggests some promise for the young songwriter...”

Full text available here: http://www.austinsound.net/NoWorsefortheWear7-12-07 - Austinsound.net


Discography

Texodus (2010)
No Worse For The Wear EP (2007)

Photos

Bio

In early January 2006, adorned in poor-fitting, borrowed business casual, Dylan Sneed slumped in a cubicle of a cold office building in downtown Dallas, TX. Over his short but painful tenure in the machine of corporate America, he learned many lessons, but one prevailed above the rest: this was not where he was supposed to spend the rest of his life.

After escaping his corporate confines he began booking national tours the grassroots way: making friends and fans one at a time across the country with a focus on Texas, the southeast, and the east coast. Hundreds of gigs and tens of thousands of miles later, Dylan has become a full-fledged road warrior. The press has described him as an "A-list tunesmith" (Dallas Observer) and "a sober Townes Van Zandt" (SC Free Times).

After finding his audience on the road, Sneed began to find his voice in the studio. The Dallas Observer praised his 2007 EP No Worse For The Wear as “one of the best local releases of the year.” Produced by Steven Collins of Deadman, the Fort Worth Weekly dubbed Sneed's fourth release "epic."

In August 2008 Sneed relocated from Dallas to the small town of Hartsville, SC, where he continued to tour and write songs for his next album.

In mid-April 2010 Dylan met five friends in a 100-year-old farmhouse in the low country of South Carolina to record his latest album, Texodus. The five-day session was a flurry of activity, as the group worked day and night tracking 14 songs. And best of all, it was all paid for before they even pushed "record."

During the previous two months Dylan raised money to fund the recording project through the website Kickstarter.com. His fans came through, pledging 120% of the budget.

In early September 2011 Sneed became an international artist after a two-week whirlwind tour in the Netherlands. His music was well received, and he plans to return annually.

No Depression says "Sneed is a terrific songwriter who knows how to turn a phrase and plays a mean acoustic guitar." The Dallas Observer described Sneed's music as "the best side of true Americana: music of passion and skill that can move an audience with a whisper or a roar.” Kevin Oliver of the SC Free Times said "Sneed’s songs give a contemporary spin to the Lone Star country and folk of Guy Clark, Steve Earle and others, coming out more like the acerbically literate North Carolina songwriters Jonathan Byrd or Malcolm Holcombe."

For the most up-to-date information on Dylan Sneed, stay tuned to www.dylansneed.com.

Notable venues played:
Paradiso (Amsterdam, NL)
Workplay Theater (Birmingham, AL)
The Living Room (New York City)
Schubas (Chicago)
Eddie's Attic (Decatur, GA)
Evening Muse (Charlotte, NC)
Cactus Cafe (Austin, TX)
Good Folk (Fayetteville, AR)
The Blue Door (Oklahoma City, OK)
Iota Club & Cafe (Arlington, VA)
McGonigel's Mucky Duck (Houston, TX)

Notable artists played with:
Brian Vander Ark (The Verve Pipe)
Monte Montgomery
Richard Shindell
Peter Mulvey
Chuck Brodsky
State Radio
Willy Porter
Ian Moore
Chris Trapper (The Push Stars)
Derek Webb

Other achievements:
#1 and #6 albums simultaneously on South Carolina Roots Radio Airplay Chart
#37 album on national Roots Music Report Folk Chart
Official showcasing artist Folk Alliance International 2010, 2011
2007 International Songwriting Competition semi-finalist for "No Worse For The Wear"
2010 International Songwriting Competition semi-finalist for "Midnight Promenade"
Performed in the Eddie's Attic Open Mic Shootout XXVII and XXXIII