There are artists who tell you what they think. Others show you what it feels like to
have a mind on fire. Hoxsey is the second kind.
Austin, Texas. A man alone in a room full of instruments, documentaries about mind
control, anxiety crawling like a nocturnal animal. His self-titled album, out July 7, is a
map of territories most people prefer not to visit. But that’s not the point.
I spoke with Hoxsey to understand what it’s like to write when the world around you
seems intent on crushing you, and why sometimes the only way not to go crazy is to
stare into the abyss and turn it into something you can listen to. I didn’t ask about the
songs. I asked about him.
Hey Hoxsey, welcome to Brio Media Group. How are you feeling today? I’ve
listened to the album, but I want to know the person. Are you ready?
Hey ya! Nice to chat. I’m feeling as well as this Texas heat will let me
Let’s start with the author before we get to the work. My
first question is simple and complicated at the same time.
Who is Hoxsey right now?
Ha! Well, I’m still trying to navigate the rough waters of this world as a father,
friend, and artist. Strange times, my friend—strange times. I’m still finding myself
and striving for balance. Lately I’ve been looking more inward.
I’ve got to say, it’s a frustrating environment we all share these days. Sometimes
I wonder if the world took a wrong turn somewhere along the timeline. Through
my lens, the world feels pretty messed up. We’re all trying to find our place in a
constantly manipulated world where human spirituality is struggling to keep
pace with our technological advancement.
Artificial intelligence, the recent UFO disclosure movement, and proxy wars are
definitely at the top of my list of concerns. The disclosure movement, especially,
feels like one of the most significant issues humanity has ever faced. So maybe
having all of that constantly on my mind is what defines who I am right now.
Haha.
Now tell us about your album, your creature. Was it born
more from a visceral urgency, or from a desire to send a
message to the listener?
It’s really a collection of songs from different periods of my life—some newer,
some much older—but every one of them comes from a deeply personal
experience or emotion I was feeling when I wrote it.
I love writing and playing music. It’s genuinely a joy. I don’t do it for anyone but
myself. I actually look at my songs more like a personal diary—a timestamp in
my own life. When I hear an old song I’ve written, it’s almost like a form of astral
nostalgia. It brings me right back to the moment it was created.
Some songs are definitely more message-driven. “Bath Salts,” for example, was
written during the COVID lockdowns. That song came from a place of
frustration. I think people are often unaware of how much influence and
manipulation exists in everyday life, especially from those far above us in
positions of power. It’s a difficult subject, but it inspired that song.
At the same time, the album also contains much lighter and more hopeful
messages. I feel compelled to share these songs with the world, even if they’re
not always the easiest conversations to have.
Is there any particular anecdote linked to a song that
you’d like to share?
Hmm… every song has a story behind it, but I’d say “Living in Reverse” has one
of the most interesting.
I had just started seeing someone, it was springtime, and life felt really inspiring.
I was messing around with an old four-track recorder and found a simple
acoustic guitar lick I’d recorded years earlier. I accidentally flipped the tape,
which created this haunting reverse effect. It sounded incredible.
I picked up my bass and learned the guitar part backwards. Then I built a slow,
half-tempo beat using an old Casio keyboard that actually had a demo button
playing something that sounded like the Titanic theme. Haha. I added percussion
and just kept building from there.
I recorded two vocal takes in one session, and somehow the whole song just
came together naturally.
For years I thought it would never be released because I’d lost the original
project files. The only thing I had left was the stereo mix, and there were lyrics I
wanted to change.
Eventually, I used AI to separate the individual tracks so I could rebuild the song.
That allowed me to replay certain instruments, re-record vocals, and finally finish
it the way I’d always imagined. To be clear, I used AI as a restoration tool—not to
write the music. It simply allowed me to recover and complete something I
thought was lost forever.
The album talks about power structures and tyrannies.
But the greatest tyranny—the one you feel every day—is it
the one that comes from outside, or the one you carry
inside?
Everyone eventually meets their own demons somewhere along the road
through life. What matters is how you deal with them and whether you keep
moving forward.
Those actions and emotions become the colors and broad strokes on your own
masterpiece.
A lot of what I write comes directly from my own experiences, and I own those
experiences completely. I also take responsibility for them.
At the same time, there are external forces that can drastically influence the
choices we make in life. So for me, it’s a blend of deeply personal experience
mixed with an awareness of the world around us. I think it’s important to keep
looking ahead while never forgetting what the rearview mirror has taught you.
You’re from Austin, a city that breathes music. Do you
feel at home there, or are you still an outsider?
Austin is a wonderfully overrated city. Haha.
Since moving here I’ve become a father, and then all of us lost years to COVID.
Because of that, I don’t think I’ve experienced the local music scene enough to
judge it fairly.
Austin absolutely has great festivals and incredible venues.
But growing up in Los Angeles during the late ’90s and early 2000s, I was
surrounded by the punk and alternative scene. That was a really special time in
my life, and naturally it’s the standard I compare everything else to.
The documentary The Minds of Men inspired “Bath
Salts.” What exactly were you looking for when you
watched it?
Haha… Truthstream Media—that amazing husband-and-wife team.
That documentary definitely influenced “Bath Salts,” and I even used some of
their footage in the music video.
It ties into what I mentioned earlier. It’s one small piece of a much bigger
conversation about influence, power, and manipulation.
I wrote “Bath Salts” during the lockdowns. It came from a place of frustration
and confusion, watching how quickly fear spread and how divided people
became. Whether people agree with me or not, that’s where the emotion behind
the song came from.
And no—I don’t want people picturing me as some stereotypical Texas guy with
a million guns, bald eagles as pets, and wearing nothing but an American flag.
Haha. I only did that photoshoot once.
What are you afraid of discovering about yourself as you
continue making music?
I ain’t afraid of nothing. Haha.
Music is one of the greatest humanizers we have. I genuinely love making it.
My best friend, the incredibly talented Mrs. Fields, joins me on my next record,
Ghost We Keep, coming August 25, 2026.
It’s going to be completely different from the Hoxsey LP. It’s built around the
world of a traveling circus—dirt roads, old tents, strange magic, forgotten
places, and ghost stories.
I honestly think it’s going to become the Halloween album people still listen to
fifty years from now.
If you had to dedicate one song to someone, which
would it be?
I’d have to say “Over the Morning’s New Moon.”
I wrote that song for my son during one of the hardest periods of our lives.
That song will always belong to him.
Finally, leave a message for the readers of Brio Media
Group.
That’s really what music is all about—shared experiences.
Listen to the chaos Don’t hear it.
Strip away the noise. Get rid of the static.
Take a moment to step outside yourself and look at your life from five feet above.
Take a breath. Experience the moment.
Be yourself. Feel what you feel. Don’t compromise who you are.
And hold some hands, bring someone with you.
It may get lonely.
Interview by Bruno Giraldo
https://beacons.ai/hoxsey
https://www.facebook.com/Hoxseywonderemporium
https://x.com/Hoxsey10
https://open.spotify.com/artist/3lpW07K2AFfIX3dDTE2tYV?si=iErRVB8SSSOOsRbU4aHcqA
https://www.youtube.com/@hoxseymusic
https://www.instagram.com/hoxseywonderemporium/
https://soundcloud.com/hoxseymusic
https://www.tiktok.com/@hoxseymusic
