The Clemens Fine Arts Center welcomes back to the Backstage Pass stage Paducah-based singer-songwriter and guitarist Daniel Neihoff this weekend.
Neihoff plans to perform songs from his 2019 record “Appalachian Cry” and from an untitled upcoming release during third appearance at the West Kentucky Community & Technical College theater.
The singer/songwriter describes himself as a “folk americana country” artist, citing contemporary influences like Jason Isbell, Tyler Childers and Zach Bryan. His newer music, he said, aims for a more stripped down, acoustic sound.
Neihoff said he has played music from a young age and that he was inspired by the songwriters and storytellers in his family – particularly his grandmother, who also played guitar.
“My grandmother, she wrote a lot and wrote songs and stories and poems and letters and all kinds of stuff. And then my dad did the same,” Neihoff said. “And so we're kind of a generation of songwriters and writers in general.”
Neihoff said that he grew up thinking everyone played a storytelling type of country music and that heavily influenced his decision to continue with that style. His songs often have a narrative form, telling someone’s life story or describing historical events.
“Most of the time, whenever you're creating a narrative around a character, people find themselves inside that character in one form or fashion,” Neihoff said. “I think that's what makes storytelling so powerful, and why it was kind of a standard way to pass down history and pass down lessons for hundreds and thousands of years.”
Neihoff said that his storytelling style allows people to process trauma or circumstances and provides an opportunity to step outside oneself. He also said writing about somebody else allows you to write their ending, which you do not get to do when dealing with ongoing circumstances. Neihoff said he really enjoys people and finds individuals worthy of a song everywhere he goes because he feels that everyone has a story to tell.
“Every day, every conversation, every single person you meet. Because the funny thing is, we all have stories inside of us. A lot of times a character inside of a song may come from one individual, or it may come from several individuals, to where it's an amalgamation of all of these characters combining,” said Neihoff. “But every single day, I meet somebody, and I talk to people, and it's really not even a matter of meeting the right person. It's about learning to listen, because everybody's got a story worth telling. It's just about finding the way to draw that out of them.”
Saturday will mark Neihoff’s first appearance at CFAC since the COVID-19 pandemic. He’ll take the stage at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are available through the college theater’s website.
