In recent years, Iowa has grown from being commonly perceived as a no man’s land to being a place that causes significant blips on the national music radar.

Thanks to the members of Slipknot, everybody’s favorite masked marvels, and bands such as The Nadas, Iowa has helped change national perception of the Midwest. The newest addition to the Iowa’s growing sound is small-town singer/songwriter Josh Davis, who recently signed with Authentic Records, home of The Nadas.

Davis picked up the guitar as a kid, and he’s been growing and developing as an artist ever since.

First performing for his friends in high school, Davis gained confidence and played at a few parties in college. After being cut from the baseball team his senior year at Grandview College in Des Moines, Davis said he started taking his songwriting more seriously. His band’s first studio album, “The White Whale,” is being released during a series of CD release shows throughout Ames and Des Moines.

Dan McClanahan: Who do you think you sound like? Could you describe it for me?

Josh Davis: I would say I sound a lot like Ryan Adams, the Gin Blossoms, the Goo Goo Dolls, Tom Petty – those types of guys. Somewhere between country and rock and roll. Mostly rock and roll with a little country twang.

DM: What do you listen to after you come home from a hard day at work?

JD: Usually Ryan Adams. I like him a lot. Lately it’s been a band called My Morning Jacket and this Southwest band called Supersonic. I grew up liking country music, but I hate all the country music on the radio these days. I think it’s all pretty bad. When I was growing up it was still country music, but now it’s like watered-down, bad pop music. It’s just god-awful. There’s still good country music, but it’s all down south. All the radio stuff is just crap.

DM: Your Web biography said most of your lyrical inspiration is from small-town experience. Could you tell me about that?

JD: I get a kick out of sitting in bars and looking at people and getting ideas from them or a few of my friends that have messed up things in the past and regret it. Things like that. I try not to be too lofty in my writing. I like understanding lyrics when I hear songs, not wondering if somebody just said something because it sounded cool but because it meant something to them.

DM: So are you making enough to support yourself full time now?

JD: I mean, I’m getting by. I give guitar lessons and kind of do some odd jobs to help people out around town. Anything to make a little extra cash, but I’m paying all the bills right now.

I could definitely have more, not that I’m greedy, but it would make it easier on myself.

DM: What’s your favorite performing experience so far, and what’s been your pinnacle of success up until now?

JD: Playing at South by Southwest. I had a blast down there with all those other musicians. We played a fun show – a lot of partying.

We had well over 700 people at the show, which is awesome for one of the shows down there that isn’t one of the big ones advertised on all the T-shirts and stuff. It’s hard to get people’s attention, I would say, but we did a pretty good job of it, I think. There’s just so many indie bands and local bands playing that you’ve never heard of, and it’s kind of freaky because they’re all doing the same thing I’m trying to do. I’m more worried about competing with the hundreds of thousands of bands my size that are trying to make it big. It definitely motivated me – I want to step it up a notch.

DM: Did you meet any idols or anybody famous while you were there?

JD: No, I didn’t. I didn’t really see anybody famous that I recognized, but I was in a drunken haze most of the week anyway.

I may very well have walked right past my idol and not even known it.

There were some really big-name shows that I wanted to see, but the wristbands for them were like $575 so I didn’t buy any of that stuff.

We went to mainly the regional and local acts the whole week, not the big indie acts that are all trying to make it, you know. They all cut their hair the same and try to be “unique” the same way everybody else is.

DM: If you could hang out with any musician, dead or alive, for a night, who would it be?

JD: Ryan Adams.

DM: You really like that guy?

JD: Oh yeah, he’s cool as hell. You ought to check him out. He’s great. And it’s Ryan Adams, not Bryan Adams with a “B.” I don’t want people thinking I listen to “(Everything I Do) I Do it For You” when I get home from work every day.