Americana Highways brings you this premiere of Casey Ahern’s song “Bradley” from her forthcoming EP Where I Run. The song will be available on March 5, 2021. The Ep was produced and mixed by Nathan Meckel and Mark Niemiec; mastered by Jim DeMain; and recorded at Sound Emporium Studios in Nashville, TN. “Bradley” is Casey Ahern on vocals and guitar; Tim Galloway on acoustic guitar; Kris Donegan on electric guitar; Lee Hendricks on bass; David Dorn on keys; Matt King on drums and Kaci Bolls on backing vocals. Right on target, Casey Ahern expresses the expanse of nostalgia and belonging on this one. Listen to it just beneath our short Q & A.
CA: At first listen, “Bradley” seems to be a romantic song about a special guy in my life. However, that’s not necessarily the case. Growing up, our ranch in Bradley, CA has always been the one place where I feel like when I’m there, I don’t have to run. That I am completely in love with where I’m at. So, when writing a song about how much the ranch means to me, what better way to express that than with a love song for it?
AH: What was it like recording this song? What were the hardest and easiest parts of the process?
CA: “Bradley” was recorded in Nashville at Sound Emporium Studios with Nathan Meckel and Mark Niemiec, along with a multitude of extremely talented Music City musicians. Just being there in the studio with such inspiring, talented people felt like I was living a dream! I think everyone’s own unique ears and playing styles mixed together to create a really beautiful, country love song that sounds organic and as if we were playing it live. I’d say the hardest part of the recording process, for me, for “Bradley,” was being 2,000 miles away from the place I’m singing about missing. However, on the flip side, that was also the easiest part because it allowed me to tap into those real, raw emotions when recoding the vocals on this track.
AH: Time to share: what is a secret about this song, or about your album, that you’d like to tell our readers that they can’t learn anywhere else?
CA: Sound Emporium, where we recorded “Bradley” sits directly across the street from a church. So the day we were tracking vocals for the track, at about the second verse where the lyric goes “your voice rings like the mission bells on Sunday,” the church bells rang. All of us in the studio thought that was pretty neat – almost like a sign!
AH:This song is from your forthcoming EP. How does it fit into the themes and vibe of the EP?
CA: The title of my upcoming EP, Where I Run, is actually a lyric taken from the “Bradley” song: “to your arms is where I run.” Each song off of the EP has some sort of running action in it, whether it be to or from a place, person, or idea. “Bradley” is escaping to the place I love; its “arms” being inside the property lines of the ranch.
AH: Tell us about the ranch in Bradley — what is it like and what do you love best about it?
CA: The ranch in Bradley, which we call Patch of Heaven Ranch, is 80 acres of natural land with a house my family always dreamt of owning. That piece of land is filled with so many memories made of when I was young and all the new ones I’m making today, so it influenced so much of who I am. And what I love best about it is that it’s about 30 minutes from any town, so it’s quiet and allows me to escape from the rat race. “Bradley” is a personal song to me, but I think everyone has some sort of “Bradley” in their life – a comforting person, place, or hobby that allows them to get away from their troubles, for at least a little while, and embrace something they truly love.
Great song. Great interview