Music is not an easy field to get into. There is a lot of competition and only a few artists will truly make it to the top.

Zach Peacock, senior from Cadiz, Ky., and lead singer and guitarist for his band, Peacock and the Feathers are willing to do whatever it takes to make it big.

The original Peacock and The Feathers consisted of Brandon Harper on drums, Tyler Burnham on guitar, Trevor Harper on bass and Peacock as the front man.

“We disbanded for a couple of years, then we finally came back together for the love of rocking out and writing music and actually started Peacock and The Feathers,” he said.

Now the group consists of Peacock, Trevor Harper, freshman from Cadiz, Ky. and Ben Stone, junior from Owensboro, Ky.

It took a while for the band to come together. Peacock started many different groups in an attempt to find one that fits best with his musical tastes and talents.

“I started my first band in eighth grade, with the name, The Trials and Tribulations of The Glass Hearted Man,” Peacock said.

At the age of 14, Peacock started another band, this time heavy metal, called Zombie Dance Party.

“We were super heavy metal and actually developed a pretty large following at a young and brutal age,” Peacock said. “We played shows in Bowling Green, Ky., and even recorded our first crappy little studio album with a guy named Rory in Bowling Green. We were too metal for our own good.”

After growing as musicians, Zombie Dance Party called it quits, and Peacock started what would be his third band, The Way The Cards Were Played.

By this time, Peacock had been working with longtime friend, Harper, who

currently plays the bass in Peacock and The Feathers.

“We have been through a lot of different music projects together and know each other very well, musically,” he said. “It is one of those relationships that takes a lifetime to build.”

The band, which has now been together for a little more than a year, is working on releasing its first studio album.

The band released a live demo in December 2012 and immediately began writing new material, Peacock said.

“It was like we had evolved as soon as the demo dropped,” he said.

Since then, the band has been hard at work writing new lyrics and music for its upcoming studio album.

“We are currently in the heavy writing phase for our next studio release,” Peacock said. “We have had discussions with our producer, Andy Howell, who is out of Nashville, about the next production process and goals for the future. The release date is still up in the air.”

The band has gained some following in Murray, but hopes to develop a better relationship with the fans. Peacock would love for the bands current fan base to stick with the them along the way.

“I like to think that people enjoy what we are doing in Murray,” Peacock said. “I think we need to do more as a band to connect with our friends and fans, but that is part of the growth as an artist and as a band.

At the end of the day, I think we have

a very attractive and intelligent fan base comprised of young people who are

intrepid in nature.”

Currently, Peacock is studying public relations at Murray State, but credits his love of music to his parents.

“As cliche as it sounds, I have always loved music,” Peacock said. “My parents were really big music fans; they pretty much raised me on VH1 and their massively eclectic CD collection. As I got a little older, I started developing a deep passion for heavy metal.”

Even though becoming a well-known artist is one of his dreams, Peacock will settle for writing a hit song.

“I have had this goal for a while, which is to write a song the whole world gets stuck in its head,” he said. “I would love to make a career out of song writing and touring and jamming with my bros, my feathers.”

It’s the writing part of music that Peacock really enjoys. He likes the idea of his words reaching out and touching someone in a personal way.

“I look up to any musicians or producers who have real ears and a passion for the music that they make,” Peacock said. “Musicians are tough people. Musicians aren’t afraid to put their hearts and souls out there. The idea is to tell a story, either with words, or melody, that someone out there can relate to and call their own. I love it when I hear a song, or a line in a song, that I just get. It makes the song so much more credible and personal.”

Faces & Places is a weekly series that profiles the people and places of Murray. Every person and every place has a story. Let us tell it.

Story by Savannah Sawyer, Assistant Features Editor.