A Chat with Duane Hoover (16.08.2026)
Duane Hoover is an artist who connects the past to the present by showcasing the threads running through decades of music and shining them through a contemporary lens. With a style that confidently crosses genres, he explores the grounding of music while reimaginging them through the modern lens we all view the world through. This can be seen in his album Sharade Parade which we had the chance to talk to him about. We also delved into his musical journey, creative process, future plans and much more!
OSR: Your musical journey started with attending the Atlanta College of Art, playing in clubs and working in radio. How do you feel this environment shaped you as an artist?
Duane: Attending the Atlanta College of Art added a lot of experimentation and introduced me to wild new influences. My band at the time played Roxy Music and Gary Numan’s first band, Tubeway Army, which had a punkish type of sound. The wild parties at unique locations also influenced the band and caused us to change and evolve somewhat.
I didn’t actually work in radio, but I did get played a lot on the radio. WRAS at Georgia State was, at the time, the largest college radio station in the South, and my music was also played across the U.S. on college radio.
OSR: You eventually left Atlanta, and the band you were in, to head to New York. What prompted the move and did you face creative blocks when you arrived?
Duane: Yep, I went to New York with three songs in regular rotation on college radio. The move was about bringing my sound to the clubs in New York’s East Village and bringing my Pop Art exhibitions to New York galleries.
I didn’t really have any creative blocks to speak of. Quite the contrary—the move opened the floodgates to so many ideas all at once that I had to tell those ideas, “Now, single file!”
The biggest challenge was practical. I had to carry my Marshall Twin amp, which was very heavy, up six flights of stairs because there was no elevator in the building. Then I somehow had to convince a cab to pick me up for rehearsals or shows and put my Marshall in the trunk. Some cabs would pull over, see the amp, and just wave and drive away.
Then I’d have to do the same thing coming back to my apartment—another six flights up. But I did get my legs very strong! Some nights, after a show or rehearsal, those six flights were very daunting.
Even when I was out of money, I could still scrounge up enough for dollar tacos at San Loco—an artist’s best friend. Then you could keep the creative juices flowing.
Often, like a blues musician, having your “back against the wall” can create its own great results. A lot of the greatest and most famous songs came out of an artist’s pain. The music becomes more real when you can hear that the person is really feeling something.
Take Dusty Springfield, for example. Her songs are so beautiful but full of pain. Hearing that this person really means it has much more impact on the listener.
OSR: Your third LP Sharade Parade looks back on music of the past and expands on the musical influences that have defined your sound. What would you say is the music that most heavily influences your music?
Duane: The music that most influences my music today is T. Rex, The Beatles, David Bowie, The Velvet Underground, and Bob Dylan.
OSR: Sharade Parade continues an exploration from your last LP Magic Mirror Story Book. Do you feel your music has shifted between the records?
Duane: Those two albums have a similarity—they’re like brother and sister. They’re similar in sound and style.
They probably could have been a double album, but I like them as two separate albums. There is one more album in this vein scheduled for release next year, in the fall or winter.
OSR: Within the LP, you have a lot of different sounding songs, but what would you recommend as the gateway to the heart of the album?
Duane: Gateway to the heart of the album? Well, there are several.
Simple rock is at the heart of it. It’s what I like. But a heart transplant could occur at any moment!
“Everytime” is a primitive, raw, stripped-down song in the vein of T. Rex or The Black Keys.
“Changing Rooms and Shifting Skies” is also early-’70s British glam, with a similar simple-rock approach and a catchy riff.
“Where the Wild Things Are” is simple glam rock—very T. Rex and Marc Bolan.
“I Can See Why” is more in the vein of John Lennon’s “Mind Games,” as a piano ballad. It’s a big track on the album, but it’s unlike most of the record. It’s definitely a standout track.
But I love the catchy pop songs, too. “She’d Tell Me Over and Over” has the cool vocal effect and chiming church bells. “More and More” is also very pop and catchy.
I like cool lyrics that actually “say something.” You very rarely hear a clever lyric in today’s music. Look inside these songs on Sharade Parade—there are lots of great examples.
All my songs start with the lyrics first, à la John Lennon. That’s how he worked. Some artists start with the music first, but mine are “word-driven.”
OSR: The recording process for the album started in your home studio before moving to Sonic Boom Studios and other local rooms. How do you feel this process impacts the emotive range of the songs?
Duane: In my home studio, I can approach a song in all different ways to see which one I like best. I might even come back on consecutive days and do another pass at the new song. Then I finish it off at Sonic Boom.
We always get great results. We try different snare drums and different miking techniques, so we’re never repeating the same sound.
That’s something Paul McCartney pushed for with The Beatles: change Ringo’s snare drum, change the sounds, and create new sounds. That was the rule, and I follow that rule as well.
OSR: When people listen to the album, what are you hoping they will take away from your music?
Duane: When people listen, I want them to get the feeling that I can make cool, unique rocker songs, great acoustic pop songs, and great piano ballads. You don’t know what’s coming next because there are a lot of different styles.
It’s like The White Album by The Beatles, which has been my favorite album since I was 17 years old. You get a lot of variety, which makes for an interesting listen.
Most of the time, I spend a lot of time deciding which songs go on the album and in what order. We play with the running order until something clicks.
I look at each album as a piece of art.
OSR: The album opens with “The Way Things Fall Apart,” but what made you realise this would be the best opener?
Duane: There’s something catchy about the chorus, and it’s recorded well, with a lot of nice, clear sounds. The playing is good, and I like the sound of the voice.
OSR: While your music brings vintage influences into the heart of the sound, what is your creative process to avoid creating songs that feel purely nostalgic?
Duane: I don’t see it as vintage or retrospective. I see it as cool, hip, and what I like.
You play what moves you, and what I play moves me.
The jam bands are very cool today—kind of the hottest thing going and filling arenas—but then people will call that “vintage” or “retro.” To the guys playing it, they’re thrilled, and so are the audiences.
There’s nothing old or mothballed about this simple rock. It will live forever and move people forever.
I heard Buddy Holly’s “Midnight Shift” on Outlaw Radio yesterday, and it’s fresher than 99 percent of what’s being done today—and it was recorded in 1959.
It’s either real or it’s not. Mine is real, and it shows my love of words and my love of rock ’n’ roll!
OSR: If there was one piece of advice that you would give to aspiring artists, what would it be?
Duane: My advice to an aspiring artist would be: “Act on every whim.”
Find out what you are as an artist by acting on every whim. I actually heard Beck say that, and I agree.
I even keep a note where I create that reminds me to “act on every whim.”
OSR: Now that the album has been released, what are your plans for the future?
Duane: There’s lots coming up in the future. The pipeline is ready for the next release in December or January. It’s a mid-era Beatles-type record.
The next release is a Bowie 1972, British glam-influenced group of songs, with a Spiders from Mars influence. John Lennon called Bowie’s music “rock ’n’ roll with lipstick.”
People are a little surprised when they hear how many album projects I have ready to go or close to being finished.
Next year, my punk days at CBGB album will come out. Then there’s a raw, Bob Dylan-like group of songs.
So, there’s a lot coming. You may even cry uncle at the onslaught of music, but it’s just rock ’n’ roll.
Many thanks to Duane Hoover for speaking with us. Find out more about Duane on his official website, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and Spotify.
This artist was discovered via Musosoup #sustainablecurator
