Jordan Brooker Digs Up the Bare Bones of ‘Surefire Way’
This heartbreaker is 'guaranteed' to move you.
’90s rock-loving Jordan Brooker writes many of his songs with an electrifying edge, courtesy of hard-charging influences like Fuel, Soundgarden and more. But he’s still a country singer-songwriter, and a new series premiering on Sounds Like Nashville today (August 21) digs in to his acoustic roots.
First up is the rural Indiana native’s latest single, “Surefire Way,” which transforms from an atmospheric alternative rocker into a confessional six-string ballad. Filmed by Zack Knudsen, the clip finds Brooker leaning on his sandpaper vocal and strumming with purpose on his well-worn guitar, delivering a moody dirge about bad romantic choices you just can’t resist. Signed to the independent publishing label of hit producer Luke Wooten (Dierks Bentley, Brad Paisley), Brooker says the official track’s expansive sound has always scored with fans on the road … but they’ve never heard it like this.
“This song really helped push things further in the right direction as far as production goes,” Brooker tells Sounds Like Nashville. “Luke and I worked hard to make sure it was something that would stand out on its own and really help zero in on that signature sound, so it’s fun to hear it stripped down to its core as an acoustic thing and get to revisit the bare bones of the song.”
“Surefire Way” is the first single off Brooker’s upcoming sophomore project — the follow up to his self-titled EP debut in 2018. That release helped make him one of Pandora’s 2019 Artists to Watch, and next week he’ll share another acoustic video highlighting the live-show talent which he recently took on tour with Drake White.
