The Wilder Blue

The Wilder Blue began in 2019 when Zane Williams, already a seasoned troubadour with seven solo albums under his belt, pulled together a select group of multi-talented musicians from the Texas music scene. Their debut album Hill Country (2020) and its follow-up The Wilder Blue
(2022) garnered comparisons to early Eagles and 80’s-era Alabama by interweaving five-part harmonies with bluegrassy arrangements of folk-rock and country songs.

For their newest release Super Natural in the fall of 2023, the band enlisted Grammynominated Brent Cobb to produce the album and perform on the title track, a song he and the band co-wrote in the studio. Brent’s groovy, vintage sensibilities proved a natural fit for a band with influences as diverse as Little Feat, Del McCoury, and Robert Earl Keen. A cover of the Eagle’s classic “Seven Bridges Road” also features band admirer Luke Combs, who has added The Wilder Blue to his 2025 stadium tour lineup.

Twenty years before he was fronting a break-out band, Zane Williams was a solo coffeehouse performer and aspiring songwriter in Nashville. After moving back to his native Texas in 2008 he eventually became a dancehall staple and respected songwriter with cuts by the likes of Pat Green, Kevin Fowler, and Cody Johnson. To the surprise of his fans (and the bemusement of his booking agent), Zane announced the formation of the new group in 2019 by soliciting band names from his fans and promising lifetime free tickets to anyone whose suggestion was picked. (The winning name “Hill Country” had to be changed just after the release of their first album due to a trademark conflict, but the winner is still on the guest list for life!)

Multi-instrumentalist, singer and songwriter Andy Rogers was the only member of Zane’s former band to join the new group. Born and raised in Lebanon, TN, Rogers learned bluegrass chops from an early age and excelled on bass, banjo, dobro, guitar, and just about anything with strings. Rogers moved to Denton, TX in 2004 to study jazz bass at the University of North Texas and made a long-term home in the eclectic arts community he found there. Playing in a series of rock and country gigs eventually led him to join the Zane Williams band on bass and vocals in 2016.

Ages 14+