Clay Hughes – “Atmosphere”

Clay Hughes – “Atmosphere” – Music Video Release/Review

Don’t call it a comeback – he’s been here for years!

Though it is somewhat…rumor has it that artist Clay Hughes has been away from music for a while, but according to his website, social-media & all that, we’ve got him back.  This is my first experience with Clay’s music, listening to his amazing single “Atmosphere” and checking out the humble animated video that complements the sound of this song so well.  Technically, it was released at the end of 2016…so there’s no denying it’s been a while for the man to release something new – but there are also releases that I can find of his albums & music that date back to at least 2010…safe to say he’s been at it a while.

And I have to say…after listening to “Atmosphere” – I had to find out what’s been keeping Clay away.  Straight-up…if I could make the music he does…well…I just can’t imagine doing anything else, truly.

Now, it’s important to note, that I’m here to talk about this particular song – but it’s a special experience like “Atmosphere” that quickly leads you to wonder what an artist is really all about.  Soon enough, I found myself checking out all kinds of videos and performances from Clay Hughes and fully immersed in what this Kansas City musician has been up to online.  I found myself thinking that, even though it’s been 2+ years he’s been away while writing new material and touring his catalog of tunes live on stage – everything I heard personally led me to believe that if quality like this takes time, I’m willing to wait.  He’s been away for all the right reasons, refining and prepping new songs for us all…that’s cool with me.

We’ll be featuring “Atmosphere” on every platform we’ve got, for plenty of great reasons.  First being – if this guy’s making music again, then I want us all to be READY for that moment and get you just as stoked as I am for whatever might come next from Clay.  So whether it’s here from this page, or on our show SBS Live This Week (Episode 088) where we’ll feature the video, or the upcoming SBS Podcast where we’ll be playing “Atmosphere” for you to hear along with some bonus thoughts of mine on Clay’s music – there’s more than enough time & opportunity to get caught up before his new tunes come out.  And I fully recommend that you do that!  Track after track & video after video, I found that Clay Hughes seemed to have a humble, honest, and real sound that listeners truly crave and connect with.  There’s an intangible magic that he has…the indefinable kind…the ‘it’ factor, though much more subtle, less flashy & in-your-face than you typically might find it, your ears will certainly confirm that it’s there.  “Atmosphere” has the kind of warm & inviting sound that you can really only get out of an artist that has music flowing through their veins from the moment they get up til the time they go to bed.  Like I said at the beginning in paraphrasing LL Cool J – don’t call this a comeback, he’s been here for years.  I have the feeling that even while he’s been away from the studio, the music continued on in him in some way, shape, or form, each & every day.  Truly…you just can’t get to the intimate & relatable sound of “Atmosphere” unless you really understand songwriting and how to deliver on its ultimate potential – and that’s where you can hear that an artist like Clay not only succeeds, but exceeds all expectations.

Clay’s done an excellent job all-around with “Atmosphere” – the song itself is amazing, the video highlights the sweet & simple vibes you get in this single perfectly…it honestly left me wanting nothing more whatsoever.  I don’t think that the beautiful sound of this song needed anything too flashy, or it would have somehow taken away from just how intimate & inviting this whole experience is…I think in both song & video-form, Clay has expertly given us just the right amount of everything to make us want more and feel more than satisfied at the same time.  Truly a gorgeous tune, exceptional melody, subtle but highly entertaining video…it’s a perfect gateway into the music of Clay Hughes and I already can’t wait to hear more from this gifted songwriter and stunningly talented artist.

I’ve got much more to tell ya about Clay and his music, more details on “Atmosphere” as well – be sure to tune into the new episodes of SBS Live This Week and the SBS Podcast this weekend and get all the information you can handle on this guy.  Because something tells me that we might just all be talking about the days we ‘heard Clay Hughes for the first time way-back-when’ one day – he’s clearly got something seriously special going on with his music and has made a timeless melody on “Atmosphere” that I’m fully confident displays the humble sound of an artist that all of our ears can truly enjoy.

Be the next artist or band to have your latest song or video featured on our page at sleepingbagstudios by clicking here!