Canon Hyche and Jacob Lovejoy are local musicians who are changing the Auburn music scene.
The two men met in a University philosophy class and have been playing in bands around Auburn for a few years now, but recently decided that there was something missing here on The Plains.
Realizing that there wasn’t a place for local musicians to record themselves, they decided to start their own record label: Sonic Sons.
“We saw people recording out of their own house,” Hyche said, “and we realized we could just do that ourselves.”
According to Lovejoy, after they opened this label, they really started to see how big the Auburn music scene is.
“Musicians popped up everywhere with original music,” Lovejoy said, “We saw the opportunity and wanted to give them a platform.”
In fact, giving a platform to these young musicians seems to be what this record label is all about.
The label’s Instagram profile describes them as “curators of expression.”
For them, this means finding local musicians who have ideas and talent, but who are looking for a little help in fully developing their sound.
According to Hyche, they are looking for musicians who “have ideas for big songs,” and musicians who have written a song that just needs a little bit more to be great.
Since the duo plays nearly every instrument that would normally be on a record, Hyche and Lovejoy believe that they are the people who can help these musicians “sound big.”
Even if an artist doesn’t want to release an EP or an album, Hyche and Lovejoy encourage them to still record with the label.
“When you hear yourself, you find mistakes and get better,” Lovejoy said.
Of course, record labels need more than just musicians, and that is where Emily Stevenson steps in.
Stevenson, an employee at Stamp in downtown Auburn, also does the graphic design for the Sonic Sons’ label and merchandise.
Lovejoy said that he and Hyche give their ideas for what they want to Stevenson, who has a lot of visionary ideas of her own.
Looking broadly at the music scene around Auburn, Hyche says the best way to describe it is “cohesive.”
When talking to any musician in Auburn, this description becomes very apparent.
Most of Auburn’s local musicians play in multiple bands, play at parties with one another, and “everybody knows each other,” Hyche said.
According to Lovejoy, this is partly because “Auburn is fortunate to always have people to look up to.”
Aware that they are now the ones being looked up to, Hyche said that the goal of this label is to show people that “if you practice your songs and can play them, it’s fun.”
That’s a pretty simple message but an effective one. Lovejoy’s was even simpler: “Don’t do drugs and be who you are.”
Looking to the future, both men want this to be something that is passed on and remains in Auburn.
They want Sonic Sons to “be a great community for Southeast Alabama,” Hyche said.
Lovejoy added that they are trying to “hold the art important in young people’s lives” and to show them that “it’s ok to spend time on music.”
Sonic Sons record label currently has several bands signed including Hyche’s band Leroy Gold, the solo works of Lovejoy under the name Dream Market and The West Chewacla Rhythm Section, a group of nine musicians all currently residing and playing in the Auburn area.
Demos, singles and full-length albums of the artists are currently available on Sonic Sons’ website.
Sonic Sons also works to bring more attention to other local musicians by promoting events where musicians will play around town as well as producing video interviews with artists such as Alex Wilkerson from the band Wilk, Anna Porter from the band Solar Fleur and solo artist Daniel Lee Webster.
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