Cool Hand Luke
Nashville, Tennessee9 reviews across 3 releases
Cool Hand Luke is a Christian indie rock band from Murfreesboro, Tennessee, formed in 1998 by Brandon Morgan and Jason Hammil while they were at Middle Tennessee State University. Mark Nicks joined soon afterward as drummer and singer, and his presence coincided with a rapid move away from the group's early punk and pop-punk footing. The independent 2002 debut I Fought Against Myself used long, often ten-song tracks built from acoustic guitar, piano and darker ambient detail, but also pushed into emo rock with heavier guitar passages. On Wake Up, O Sleeper, the trio settled into slower indie rock, with Nicks replacing earlier screaming with a wide falsetto and the songs drawing on Christian belief and spiritual struggle without sounding like standard praise music. The Fires of Life expanded that approach into piano-led melodic rock with a more pronounced gothic backdrop and art-rock texture.
In 2004, Morgan and Hammil left, ending the original three-piece; Nicks later rebuilt Cool Hand Luke with new players after a year-long hiatus. The re-formed band completed its Floodgate obligation with The Balancing Act in 2007, but Floodgate folded during its release. A move to Lujo Records followed, producing The Sleeping House in 2008, while Nicks became the sole remaining member. He announced in 2009 that the forthcoming Of Man would be the final Cool Hand Luke album; released independently in 2011, it drew contributions from more than thirty musicians and was followed by a long break. In 2017, Nicks revived the name for Cora, returning Cool Hand Luke to active use rather than closing its history with the 2011 record.
3 releases reviewed
I Fought Against Myself
The Fires of Life