Photo by Madelynn Elyse.
I can’t believe it’s finally out.
‘Bones (Bury Me Deeply & Sweetly)’ is the first track off our next album, ‘Mechanical Clouds’. And it’s a song that’s very near and dear to my heart.
There’s a bit of history behind it… I started Johnny Stranger in 2006 as a studio experiment in Washington State (where I grew up). I had a circle of friends contributing to the record and we were all very enthusiastic about the project. We self-released two albums and built a little community around us.
I would have been 22 or 23 at the time. And I wanted to pursue Johnny Stranger as a career. The drummer from Johnny Stranger (who was an incredible player and major cheerleader for the group) was moving to Boston for college at Berklee… so I made plans to follow, to keep that musical connection sizzling.
It took me a few months of saving money and teaching guitar lessons, but I finally built up a little nest egg. I found a cheap apartment over the internet and arranged to fly out to Boston in January 2008. I had never visited, but I was going to move and pursue Johnny Stranger with all I had.
Unfortunately, things didn’t go according to plan. After about a month in the city, the other members of Johnny Stranger were off to pursue other projects and I was left alone. Luckily I was able to convince the players to record one last record with me (what would become ‘Galacticus 9’). We played a sold-out return home show at the Capitol Theater (in Olympia WA). But then - upon returning to Boston - things fizzled out.
I spent a lot of time wandering around Boston, freezing cold and upset. I did my best to soothe my bruised ego, but I was 23 and not well-equipped to see outside my narrow point-of-view. I got a job at a Blockbuster in Central Square and just sort of… existed.
But I never stopped working on Johnny Stranger. And I was never truly alone. My good friend Blake (and his incredible family) lived an hour train ride out of town and they even allowed me and Blake to track ‘Galacticus 9’ and ‘Iliad & Odyssey’ at their farm. I made some great friends at Blockbuster too. And I especially valued the musicians who offered to join Johnny Stranger to help it grow. I might have felt alone, but - in retrospect- I was blessed to have so many incredible friends.
Over the next two and a half years, I rebuilt the Johnny Stranger lineup and wrote a batch of songs for a record called ‘Mechanical Clouds’. For me, the songs just hit different. More serious and dark, with even more jazz chords and progressive song structures… it felt like my experience in Boston. I moved before we could track the ‘Mechanical Clouds’ material in Boston. But - as you can likely surmise - I have held onto these tracks, waiting for the right time.
‘Bones (Bury Me Deeply & Sweely)’ was one of the first songs I wrote for Mechanical Clouds. And I wasn’t entirely sure what I was singing about at the time… but in retrospect I was singing about holding onto my confidence in the face of defeat. It’s about believing in your intuition. It’s about trusting in yourself. I needed to hear that back then. Heck, I still need to hear this. But it was especially intense at the time.
Maybe I’ll do a more focused deep-dive into the lyrics if anyone is interested. Let me know if you are.
But to zoom out a bit… I am in an incredible place and so fucking thrilled with all of you Johnny fans out there. More singles and videos are coming. And vocals for Album 7 are being tracked as we speak. And demos for Album 8 have already commenced. My hope is to just keep music rumbling out of the station, year round, till we hit album #12.
Thank you all again for your messages and shares. You know how to make an indie band feel HUGE! 🦁