Max Norton has always been in motion. After a decade drumming for major recording artists and cutting his teeth on some of the world’s biggest stages, the Tampa-born, Nashville-raised musician is stepping firmly into his own spotlight with “The Wolves,” a new single that marks the beginning of his next artistic era. It’s the first release from a fresh body of work shaped over the last year and a half—a period he spent living in London, soaking up the city’s grit and atmosphere after falling for the UK during performances on Later… with Jools Holland and at Glastonbury. “The Wolves” arrives as a distillation of that journey: restless, searching, and resolutely forward-facing.
“The Wolves is a traveling song,” Norton shares, offering a window into the track’s pulse. “It’s about that drive to push forward no matter what. There is always something trying to catch you or chase you, but you learn to live with it and use it to your advantage.” It’s a sentiment that feels almost autobiographical—Norton has spent the last several years outrunning expectation, stepping out from behind the kit to carve out a voice that is fully his own. The single’s rugged momentum mirrors the instinct to keep going, even when the world nips at your heels.
His résumé reads like a tour of modern music’s great cultural moments—Bonnaroo, Coachella, late-night TV slots with Seth Meyers and David Letterman. But despite all that acclaim, Norton felt a creative pressure building. The only way forward was total authorship: writing, performing, and producing everything himself. That leap has led him across the US and back again, performing in New York, Los Angeles, Nashville, Tampa, and London, building a reputation as a solo artist with something urgent to say. “The Wolves” is simply the next step in that evolution, and the energy suggests he’s nowhere near slowing down.
Now based in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, Norton has rooted himself in a place steeped in musical mythology. “All of my favorite records were made in the Shoals,” he says. “The Singing River, as they say. There’s just something in the water.” It’s a fitting home for an artist in a state of metamorphosis—somewhere where history hums beneath every surface, encouraging the kind of raw, self-defined creativity Norton is leaning into.
Fans won’t have to wait long to see this new chapter unfold live. Norton kicks off 2025 with a stop at Rock The Park Festival in Tampa on January 1st, followed by shows in New York City on January 18th and 23rd, with more dates set to land soon. For an artist learning to run with the wolves rather than away from them, it’s clear Max Norton’s next chase is just beginning. Tour details, here.
