Listen to This: Lucas Hudgins is Helpless to “Them Little Thrills”

It’s been over a decade since Lucas Hudgins recorded his excellent sophomore LP, The World Left Is Mine, which properly introduced his low and suave honky-tonk style to Austin.

The talented vocalist and songwriter fell off the radar not too long after, taking time to work through some health issues and, admittedly, losing some of his inspiration along the way.

“Looking back now, I think one of the big reasons I haven’t put out anything in a while, is that I didn’t have anything I wanted to say,” offers Hudgins. “If I’m trying to find some silver linings, after dealing with those health issues and then having the time over the past year-and-a-half to step away and see everything from a different perspective, I realized that I wasn’t happy doing just one kinda thing. It was starting to feel like I was just going through the motions and I knew, to some degree, that I was gonna have to do some things differently.”

Hudgins’ new single “Them Little Thrills” does in fact strike differently, though not so far that his dancehall roots aren’t still leading. The song licks soulfully with a border touch behind his booming, settled-in croon, and getting back into the studio with producer Hal Jon Vorpahl and Jon Grossman unlocked some new territory for Hudgins. His voice has never sounded better, and the new single swells with classic barrom regret of the mistakes you can’t help but keep making.

“I honestly feel re-energized, like I am starting to realign with the direction I want my music to go in,” he says. “Kinda like I got my own little phoenix rising mythos going in my head. I have been playing around Austin for the past few months, and it's been feeling real good.”

While Hudgins has been working with a new configuration of old pals on stage – including Scott Mason, Billy Horton, and Dave Biller – the new recording recruits Doug Strahan and Johnny Dango on guitars, Nigel Frye on bass, Grossman on keys and accordion, and George Duron on drums.

The latest single is one of several new songs Hudgins has already cut, with an eye on releasing an EP in the coming months, and a new full-length next year.

“I am very proud of what I have done up to this point, but I don’t want to feel like I’m trapped in a tiny room,” Hudgins admits. “There are other influences I want to draw from. From Ween to Al Green. I love Honky Tonk, but I gotta do it my way. Ultimately, it’s about artistic expression through song. I want to constantly be on the path of evolving my sound and trying to find new avenues to make a connection through my voice and my music. These new recordings are a hell of a start down that path.”

You can check out the new song premiering below, and have several opportunities to catch Hudgins around town this week: at the White Horse Friday night, ABGB Sunday afternoon, and Sam’s Town Point on Monday.