A Thousand Horses, the Nashville-based Southern rock band known for their fusion of country grit and rock ‘n’ roll swagger, entered a bold new era with their third studio album, ‘The Outside,' released last year and have extended that era recently with the release of the deluxe version.
The record marks their first as a trio—frontman Michael Hobby, guitarist Bill Satcher, and bassist Graham DeLoach—following the departure of guitarist Zach Brown in 2023 . The album showcases a matured sound, blending introspective lyrics with a raw, rootsy energy that reflects the band’s personal and professional evolution. Tracks like ‘Room Full of Strangers' and ‘Highway Sound' highlight their commitment to authentic storytelling and musical craftsmanship.
The release of both versions of ‘The Outside' represents more than just a lineup change; it’s a testament to A Thousand Horses’ resilience and artistic growth. Embracing their new dynamic, the band has crafted a collection of songs that delve into themes of transformation, self-discovery, and the complexities of life on the road. The album’s Deluxe Edition offers additional material that further explores these motifs . As they continue to evolve, A Thousand Horses remain dedicated to delivering music that resonates with authenticity and emotional depth.
We sat down with lead singer Michael Hobby to discuss the band’s journey, the creative process behind The Outside, the release of the deluxe version and what lies ahead for A Thousand Horses this year – including a summer UK tour!!
Thank you for talking to us Michael, we appreciate your time as we know what a busy guy you are.
Oh no, thank you very much, man, I'm looking forward to talking to you.
Let's start at the kind of the beginning. This year is the 10th anniversary of ‘Southernality' which took me a little by surprise when I learned that! Where did all the time go?
I know! Can you believe it? 10 years this June.
How have you and the guys evolved as writers and musicians in that decade?
I would say we've grown tremendously. Factor in 10 years of being on the road, 10 years of writing songs and 10 years of personal highs and lows – we all are dads now, married….. I feel better than ever now in what we are doing and what's coming though – it feels good.
We were so young when all this kicked off a decade ago and we've got a lot more experience under our belts now.
If I could take you back to that era and let you give yourself a piece of advice what would you say to yourself?
Don't drink so much!! (laughing) Maybe even refine that to ‘slow down and enjoy it a little more,' you know? It was such a rocket ride and you can get lost in the chaos the first time that it happens to you. I will often tell newer artists that we see the same thing – you're on your rocket ship ride right now but try and slow things down and enjoy them if you can.
Chris Stapleton once told me this: Be nice and watch your drinking! (laughing)
I tell everybody that and tell them to make to to enjoy what your are doing and have achieved because it's here and gone faster than you can imagine.
‘Southernality' achieved a lot of commercial success and pushed the band into newer areas and markets. Coming forward a decade to your new album, ‘The Outside' – what are your metrics of success now?
Success for us, in 2025, is that we are still able to do what we do. The music business is tough to be in – you hit some singles and doubles and you keep going and try for a couple of home runs along the way. Success is seeing our fans light up when we put out something new, seeing people turn up tour after tour at our shows – we've been a band a long time and there's always a new milestone to reach.
We play music, we get to see people and we get to travel the world – that must be success in anyone's book.
I really love new song ‘Til My Heart Don't Beat.' The bombast of it, the guitar riff etc What was the inspiration behind that song?
Man, that guitar lick was a big part of the idea behind the song. We got together that day to write a rock song – something fun and killer. That one kind of just fell out – we didn't necessarily know what it was but we knew it was a killer song! (laughing)
That was the cool thing about adding it to the deluxe version of the record. Originally we were just going to do some live tracks on there and we always love releasing acoustic versions of our songs, we've done that lots before in the past. I was such a fan of the MTV ‘Unplugged' format and acoustic versions of rockier songs, so cool. When it came to putting the deluxe together we were, like, ‘we've got this new song done and it's kinda bridging the gap for us between where we are now and where we are headed for on the next album we are working on so we thought it was the perfect fit.
Will it be making its way into your live set?
You know, we were just talking about that the other day. I would like it to. We may try to throw it in on the UK tour – when we play over there some of the rockier stuff gets a big response. Last time we were there five years ago we played songs like ‘My Time's Comin' which is a heavier song and the whole crowd knew it, which was a fantastic surprise for us.
You know that we are a nation of deep-cut lovers and album track fans over here in the UK. ‘One Man Army' is still my favourite deep-cut of yours. Do you have a favourite song that you don't get to play very often?
You know, ‘One Man Army' would be one of those songs for me. We were talking about the setlist for the UK tour recently and I would love to change up what we are doing here and do something different for our UK fans. I think ‘One Man Army' is a great song – that song got caught up in a difficult time of record label issues and I hate that but it has grown organically on it's own over the years. I will put it on the list for the UK tour!!!
‘The Outside' was a really cohesive record in terms of the way it flowed from beginning to end. It has a real ebb and a flow to it in the same way that albums from the 70s and 80s used to have. How much effort did you put into the sequencing of the album?
We put a lot of thought into that. We started making the record during a time when we had a lot of songs piled up and we were starting to write again together as a three piece after some changes within the band in terms of line up and within our lives and our wider team.
We reverted back to doing what it was we knew best to do and that was to make a record! We balanced songs that we'd always wanted to cut that we'd had for a while against the newer side of songs we'd recently written and used that to re-spark our creativity.
What's the oldest song you had that went on the album?
Man….. You know it might have been ‘Summer' or ‘Room Full of Strangers.' On the newer side of things ‘The Outside' was a new song, ‘Over the Counter' was a newer one.
Given you co-wrote ‘Room Full of Strangers' with Chris Stapleton why did you sit on it for so long?
Man, that's a great question!! (laughing) When it came to us making other records it just didn't seem to raise its head but I don't know why we ignored it for so long to be honest. When we cut it I did ask the guys why it had taken us so long – maybe it just wasn't the right time for it to be born! (laughing) It feels right now, though.
The title track seems to be carrying a Foo Fighters influence in that guitar tone and style….
Oh cool that you hear that. We're always been huge fans of theirs. Oasis has also always been a big influence on us too so maybe there's a bit of that in there too? Growing up we were a rock band – The Black Crowes, Foo Fighters, Soundgarden, Stone Temple Pilots – they were all bands that we listened to. Maybe we are in a period of lives now where we have more freedom to let some of those influences out now?
I'm a generation older than you so what I hear in your music is very 80s based. Aerosmith, The Georgia Satellites – classic bands of that era.
I'm a huge Aerosmith fan. We got to meet and play with Steven Tyler once, which was a big bucket list thing for me. Those type of bands have always been in our DNA. That rock side. We come from the south so we are a southern rock band that leans into the Country lane sometimes and into the rock thing at others – it's what makes us unique, in my opinion.
How much thought do you put into straddling both Rock and Country when you are writing a song or do you just write what you want to write and let the cards fall as they will?
Now we kinda write what we wanna write. We're not trying to thread a needle or chase any particular sound anymore. What we are working on now on the follow up to ‘The Outside' is a very natural transition for us. Chasing something is never going to lead to anything of substance.
How has going down to a thee piece influenced your sound and style?
I mean, it was a bummer losing Zach but it was blessing for him and his life. He's a friend of ours, man, we grew up together. There was no drama with anything it came down to his life and his family being important to him. There's a different dynamic now but it still rolls on the same – Bill and Graham and I have been doing this for a long time and we can pivot, I'm not too concerned about being a three-piece these days as we have a great couple of guys in Nathan and Adam that come out on the road with us and turn us into a five piece!
What can you tell me about the new music in terms of sound, style and ETA?
Yeah. The ETA is still to be determined. We are working on it now whilst we are at home for a little while and we're making a rock record! We're getting back to the roots of those records and those bands that we have already talked about, those artists that influenced us to get into music in the first place. It's a natural progression for us that feels great and we're excited for people to hear it – a lot of people have been wanting us to do what we are just about to do for a few years now!
Check out the deluxe version of ‘The Outside' right now. Tickets for A Thousand Horses' UK summer tour are on sale now right here.
