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A soulful lead guitar guides us into “The Love” from Zach Scoggins’ debut album True Believer.

“I don’t know what makes the wind blow, and I don’t know how far the universe goes. I don’t know how much water is in the sea, but I know what it is that the world needs,” Scoggins sings. “That’s the love of a good friend when you’re feeling low. A heart to help you carry all the burdens that grow. Someone to lean on and lighten your load. So grab the love that will hold you and never let you go.”

The lead guitar soars into an Allman Brothers style instrumental. We get some environmental noise and hand claps that form a warm atmosphere. It’s an incredibly uplifting song that comes in the tradition of “Lean On Me.” 

“I always wanted to do a song with that type of heart,” Scoggins said. “It could really meet somebody in a low place.”

Scoggins finds inspiration in New Braunfels

Scoggins serves as a youth minister and mentor for students in South Texas and “The Love” is a natural extension of his work. His inspiration to record came from weekly songwriter nights hosted by Dallas Burrow at the Redbird Listening Room in New Braunfels. 

Scoggins connected to Jacob Muniz Productions in San Antonio for help with production and arrangements for the songs he penned to perform solo at the Redbird, and over the past year Scoggins refined his material to try and deeply connect to the listener. 

“I think as songwriters’ we have to be clever. It can’t be generic, it can’t be stereotypical,” Scoggins said. He took advice from Muniz while finalizing the material and True Believer was born. “You have really to develop a humility muscle,” Scoggins said of the collaboration. “There were a number of times where I had to say ‘you know what’ that idea is better.”

If you ran into Scoggins at a local writers’ night, you would have no idea how quickly he picked up the guitar. What started out in the quarantine has turned into an extension of his personality and a vessel to spread the message of redemption and love. True Believer puts a powerful band behind his voice in this impressive debut. 

“My hope is to drop a gospel message in every single song,” Scoggins said. The title track of the album is a reimagining of the closing song on Dallas Burrow’s latest release Blood Brothers. “True Believer” came at a tough time for Scoggins and uplifted him when he needed motivation for his journey. “It just had a certain fire, electricity to it that I needed at that time,” Scoggins said. “It just really helped me in a really low time. And it is who I am, I’m a true believer.”