Universal Republic/Universal Records South will release the debut album from Kevin Costner & Modern West, titled Untold Truths, on November 11. Though best known for his acting career, Costner is no stranger to the art of making music and songwriting. The band's history goes back some 20 years when Kevin first met band mate John Coinman in Los Angeles during an acting workshop. The two began playing and writing music together and soon after started a band called "Roving Boy." As Kevin's star began to rise, he was unable to devote much time to the band. However, he and some of the band members continued behind-the-scenes playing, writing, and recording anytime they could throughout the years.

A few years back the itch became stronger for Costner to start performing on a more regular basis. Costner recalls a performance back in August 2005 and remarks, "I remember looking out into the crowd, thinking 'this just feels right'." And with that, his passion continued to grow with the end product of that passion being the debut album, Untold Truths.

Radio programmer Scott Lindy was one of the first people to hear the new album and had this to say: "I know what you're thinking about when you hear Kevin's gonna put out an album of country music. I thought it too. But then I heard it, and I got it. He's not chasing fame here (do you really think he needs to?), he's following a passion. I couldn't keep this music off of the air."

The album is comprised of 12 original tracks all written or co-written by Kevin Costner & Modern West (Modern West is John Coinman, Blair Forward, Teddy Morgan, Larry Cobb and Park Chisolm). A 4-song sampler shipped to Country radio October 1 and includes the tracks "Long Hot Night", "Hey Man What About You", "90 Miles An Hour" and "Superman 14." The track "Long Hot Night" is available for download now wherever digital music is sold. The band will tour later this year and into early 2009 in support of the release.

Untold Truths is produced by Teddy Morgan and John Coinman

Listen to Kevin Costner and Modern West: "Long Hot Night", from the upcoming album, Untold Truths, out on Nov. 11: Windows | Quicktime

Kevin Costner & Modern West
The modern genesis of Modern West began when Kevin's wife, Christine, encouraged him to reconnect with his love of music.

However, the history of the band goes back over 20 years when Kevin met John Coinman in a dirty, downtown warehouse in Los Angeles during an acting workshop. John was a musician with an intense interest in acting and Kevin was an actor with an intense interest in music. They became friends and began to play and write music together along with another friend, Blair Forward. That collaboration turned into the band Roving Boy - a rock band with an edgy Western style and a small record deal in Japan where they had a #1 single called "Simple Truth".

As Kevin's star began to rise, the band continued behind-the-scenes playing, writing, and recording anytime they could get together. Coinman and Forward both ended up in Tucson, Arizona, where they met guitarist/producer Teddy Morgan and drummer Larry Cobb. So in 2005 when the three former Roving Boys decided to build a new band together, they brought in Teddy and Larry and named it Modern West.

Born from a shared love of music and comprised of a tight-knit group of longtime friends, Kevin Costner and Modern West draw their influences from a broad tapestry of American music and beyond. The show itself flows from original material penned by the band to cover songs written by some of music's giants.

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