Trackimage | Playbut | Trackname | Playbut | Trackname |
---|---|---|---|---|
8359737 | Play | Just to Know What You've Been Dreaming | 00:00 Tools | |
8359744 | Play | Sleep a While | 00:00 Tools | |
8359751 | Play | Closing Down My House | 00:00 Tools | |
8359761 | Play | From This I Will Awake | 00:00 Tools | |
8359748 | Play | Vultures Await | 00:00 Tools | |
8359750 | Play | Catherine Dupree | 00:00 Tools | |
8359762 | Play | Blackest Sparrow Darkest Night | 00:00 Tools | |
8359767 | Play | Cracking Of The Seal | 00:00 Tools | |
8359752 | Play | Just Some Silence | 00:00 Tools | |
8359757 | Play | On, Caledonia | 00:00 Tools | |
8359754 | Play | Your Bulldozer | 00:00 Tools | |
8359755 | Play | Nothin' but Godzilla | 00:00 Tools | |
8359753 | Play | As Victims Would | 00:00 Tools | |
8359738 | Play | You Will Be Here, Mine | 00:00 Tools | |
8359784 | Play | Hoping Machine | 00:00 Tools | |
8359756 | Play | Fly, My Sweet Dove | 00:00 Tools | |
8359758 | Play | A Thousand Other Parts | 00:00 Tools | |
8359847 | Play | Fly High | 00:00 Tools | |
8359848 | Play | My Revolutionary Mind | 00:00 Tools | |
8359845 | Play | Old L.A. | 00:00 Tools | |
8359741 | Play | Rosanky | 00:00 Tools | |
8359921 | Play | Talking Empty Bed Blues | 00:00 Tools | |
8359742 | Play | Scorpion | 00:00 Tools | |
8359875 | Play | V.D. City | 00:00 Tools | |
8359739 | Play | It Goes Away So Fast | 00:00 Tools | |
8359740 | Play | Bloodkin Push (Forget the Ones) | 00:00 Tools | |
8359840 | Play | Chorine My Sheba Queen | 00:00 Tools | |
8359745 | Play | Blackest Sparrow / Darkest Night | 00:00 Tools | |
8359743 | Play | Riding From Within | 00:00 Tools | |
8359746 | Play | Winter Screen Four | 00:00 Tools | |
8359964 | Play | Careless Reckless Love | 00:00 Tools | |
8359749 | Play | Truss of Ten | 00:00 Tools | |
8359747 | Play | Vehicular and True | 00:00 Tools | |
8359843 | Play | Angel's Blues | 00:00 Tools | |
8359855 | Play | No Fear | 00:00 Tools | |
8359768 | Play | Philo Manitoba | 00:00 Tools | |
8359850 | Play | Changing World | 00:00 Tools | |
8359976 | Play | New Multitudes | 00:00 Tools | |
8359776 | Play | Karcher's Contacts | 00:00 Tools | |
8359774 | Play | Murder of Tides (Westerlies) | 00:00 Tools | |
8359783 | Play | Commonly Linked | 00:00 Tools | |
8359782 | Play | Re-run Pills | 00:00 Tools | |
8359785 | Play | The Riot Jack | 00:00 Tools | |
51154410 | Play | Around New York | 00:00 Tools | |
8359773 | Play | Feel Something | 00:00 Tools | |
51154411 | Play | Jake Walk Blues | 00:00 Tools | |
51154412 | Play | Whereabouts Can I Hide | 00:00 Tools | |
8359788 | Play | Tent of Total Mystery | 00:00 Tools | |
8359763 | Play | Big Distortion | 00:00 Tools | |
51154418 | Play | Call, Call, Call | 00:00 Tools | |
8359796 | Play | In a Motionless Way | 00:00 Tools | |
8359769 | Play | Back To You | 00:00 Tools | |
51154413 | Play | Old Kokaine | 00:00 Tools | |
8359786 | Play | River Koltolwash | 00:00 Tools | |
51154414 | Play | I Was A Goner | 00:00 Tools | |
8359885 | Play | San Antone Meat House | 00:00 Tools | |
8359812 | Play | Emma Jane | 00:00 Tools | |
8359926 | Play | Dopefiend Robber | 00:00 Tools | |
89200642 | Play | A Solitary Slip | 00:00 Tools | |
51154420 | Play | Nameless, But A Lover | 00:00 Tools | |
8359793 | Play | The Yellow Signals | 00:00 Tools | |
51154416 | Play | When I Get Home | 00:00 Tools | |
51154422 | Play | Paradise, Basically | 00:00 Tools | |
51154419 | Play | You vs. Off The Cuff | 00:00 Tools | |
89200643 | Play | Necessitarianism (Fred Merkle's Blues) | 00:00 Tools | |
8359895 | Play | Your Smile Cured Me | 00:00 Tools | |
51154415 | Play | World's On Fire | 00:00 Tools | |
51154423 | Play | (Made Us Feel Like) Kings | 00:00 Tools | |
51154417 | Play | Atom Dance | 00:00 Tools | |
51154426 | Play | Pulleys | 00:00 Tools | |
89200644 | Play | Cornelius | 00:00 Tools | |
51154427 | Play | The Watchman | 00:00 Tools | |
8359805 | Play | To Place Me On A Stone | 00:00 Tools | |
8359778 | Play | California | 00:00 Tools | |
51154428 | Play | Multnomah | 00:00 Tools | |
8359827 | Play | The Re-Run Pills | 00:00 Tools | |
51154421 | Play | Freedom's Fire | 00:00 Tools | |
87155359 | Play | Childress (To Ogden) | 00:00 Tools | |
8359791 | Play | LIttle Raider | 00:00 Tools | |
8359833 | Play | Vultures Wait | 00:00 Tools | |
51154424 | Play | Muddy Water Finds Its Way | 00:00 Tools | |
51154425 | Play | Healing Hand | 00:00 Tools | |
87155357 | Play | Nervousness Fangs | 00:00 Tools | |
8359770 | Play | Forget Everything | 00:00 Tools | |
87155358 | Play | Every Single Day Of Late | 00:00 Tools | |
8359760 | Play | Living Well Is the Best Revenge | 00:00 Tools | |
87155360 | Play | Predator | 00:00 Tools | |
8359766 | Play | Devil On The Interstate Line | 00:00 Tools | |
8359787 | Play | Tangle For The Less | 00:00 Tools | |
8359830 | Play | Don't Mess With Freedom | 00:00 Tools | |
89200645 | Play | A Carousel Victor | 00:00 Tools | |
51154429 | Play | It's A Pretty Fucked Skyline Now | 00:00 Tools | |
87155361 | Play | Ruby Shameless | 00:00 Tools | |
51154430 | Play | Thug Life pt. 2 | 00:00 Tools | |
89200646 | Play | Gasconade | 00:00 Tools | |
8359800 | Play | Parade of Choosers | 00:00 Tools | |
8359790 | Play | A Sin | 00:00 Tools | |
8359810 | Play | Mandatory on the Attack | 00:00 Tools | |
89200647 | Play | Shadow Matter | 00:00 Tools | |
89200648 | Play | Heresy and Snakes | 00:00 Tools | |
87155362 | Play | Milaak | 00:00 Tools | |
89200649 | Play | Need Of Trust And Thunder | 00:00 Tools | |
8359854 | Play | Song of Impossible Things | 00:00 Tools | |
8359825 | Play | Barack Obama (Someone to Wake) | 00:00 Tools | |
87155365 | Play | Filled With A Falcon's Dreams | 00:00 Tools | |
8359789 | Play | In My Veins | 00:00 Tools | |
87155366 | Play | Hey-O, Hi-O | 00:00 Tools | |
89200650 | Play | Chimera | 00:00 Tools | |
87155364 | Play | Hatteras | 00:00 Tools | |
8359818 | Play | Limited Quality | 00:00 Tools | |
8359803 | Play | Slip Away | 00:00 Tools | |
8359759 | Play | The Big Game Is Every Night | 00:00 Tools | |
8359817 | Play | If We Had Our Say | 00:00 Tools | |
8359801 | Play | To Coupland Lines | 00:00 Tools | |
51154431 | Play | D. Boon - Free (A Ninth Grade Crime) | 00:00 Tools | |
89200651 | Play | (You Were) Just Barely You | 00:00 Tools | |
8359799 | Play | One More Dreamer For The Summer | 00:00 Tools | |
8359809 | Play | Caught Between Us | 00:00 Tools | |
8359815 | Play | All Along | 00:00 Tools | |
8359814 | Play | Are You Ready for the Shutdown? | 00:00 Tools | |
8359764 | Play | Good Intentions (feat. Whitney Oviatt) | 00:00 Tools | |
8359797 | Play | Let Me In | 00:00 Tools | |
51154433 | Play | A California Love | 00:00 Tools | |
89200652 | Play | To The Shepard, To The Lion | 00:00 Tools | |
8359808 | Play | Thousand Other Parts | 00:00 Tools | |
8359772 | Play | You're Gone | 00:00 Tools | |
8359765 | Play | Let It Fade Away | 00:00 Tools | |
51154432 | Play | Chalked Lines-Waxed Sun | 00:00 Tools | |
8359811 | Play | To Be In Love With You | 00:00 Tools | |
8359804 | Play | St. Maria | 00:00 Tools | |
8359771 | Play | Between You and Me | 00:00 Tools | |
8359933 | Play | Who's Telling You Now? | 00:00 Tools | |
51154434 | Play | Love's Not Strong | 00:00 Tools | |
87155367 | Play | All Our Deeds (Sure Find Their Ways) | 00:00 Tools | |
8359828 | Play | I Did A Terrible Thing | 00:00 Tools | |
8359806 | Play | Right By You | 00:00 Tools | |
8359775 | Play | Better Days | 00:00 Tools | |
8359798 | Play | who's telling you now | 00:00 Tools | |
8359777 | Play | What Will Be | 00:00 Tools | |
8359780 | Play | Song for Amy | 00:00 Tools | |
89200653 | Play | Color of a Lonely Heart Is Blue | 00:00 Tools | |
51154472 | Play | Inclined | 00:00 Tools | |
8359781 | Play | Say | 00:00 Tools | |
8359813 | Play | You & I | 00:00 Tools | |
87155368 | Play | Small Leads | 00:00 Tools | |
8359973 | Play | I, The Kite | 00:00 Tools | |
8359795 | Play | I, The Kite (live on KRCL) | 00:00 Tools | |
51154441 | Play | Thug Life, Pt. 2 | 00:00 Tools | |
8359842 | Play | Lenore's Lullabye (Molina & Johnson) | 00:00 Tools | |
8359822 | Play | From Red to Blue | 00:00 Tools | |
8359839 | Play | Murder Of Tides | 00:00 Tools | |
51154439 | Play | On and On | 00:00 Tools | |
51154443 | Play | Chalked Lines / Waxed Sun | 00:00 Tools | |
51154435 | Play | Paper & Fire | 00:00 Tools | |
8359874 | Play | Upton to Riverhead to Mastic | 00:00 Tools | |
8359821 | Play | How to Cry | 00:00 Tools | |
51154437 | Play | Chalked Lines/Waxed Sun | 00:00 Tools | |
8359816 | Play | So Long | 00:00 Tools | |
51154456 | Play | It’s a Pretty F'd Skyline Now | 00:00 Tools | |
8359837 | Play | Almost Let You In | 00:00 Tools | |
8359823 | Play | Let Me Down | 00:00 Tools | |
51154436 | Play | Not Ready | 00:00 Tools | |
8359820 | Play | Better Luck Next Time | 00:00 Tools | |
8359835 | Play | Through Thick and Thin | 00:00 Tools | |
51154449 | Play | Sometimes Love Gets Away | 00:00 Tools | |
8359834 | Play | Everything's Not Gone | 00:00 Tools | |
8359826 | Play | How to Cry (DJ Emuhunter Remix) [ Bonus Track] | 00:00 Tools | |
51154438 | Play | Going Back Song (Baptist Generals) | 00:00 Tools | |
8359867 | Play | Will Johnson - Closing Down My House | 00:00 Tools | |
8359829 | Play | This Is It | 00:00 Tools | |
8359824 | Play | This Old Town (Demo) [ Bonus Track] | 00:00 Tools | |
51154450 | Play | Go On | 00:00 Tools | |
8359819 | Play | The Scorpion | 00:00 Tools | |
51154451 | Play | Why Don't You Do It | 00:00 Tools | |
51154453 | Play | Playing to Win | 00:00 Tools | |
8359831 | Play | This Old Town | 00:00 Tools | |
8359792 | Play | Bloodkin Push | 00:00 Tools | |
89200654 | Play | To The Shephard, To The Lion | 00:00 Tools | |
51154440 | Play | Remember When | 00:00 Tools | |
51154457 | Play | For Two | 00:00 Tools | |
51154442 | Play | I Know | 00:00 Tools | |
8359836 | Play | Twenty Cycles to the Ground | 00:00 Tools | |
51154465 | Play | Burning Neon | 00:00 Tools | |
8359794 | Play | Devil On The Interstate | 00:00 Tools | |
8359878 | Play | just to know what you've been | 00:00 Tools | |
51154444 | Play | Late At Night | 00:00 Tools | |
51154464 | Play | Prove Me Wrong | 00:00 Tools | |
8359880 | Play | Flashes and Cables | 00:00 Tools | |
51154462 | Play | I Won't Fight | 00:00 Tools | |
8359911 | Play | The Schizmatists' Curse | 00:00 Tools | |
51154446 | Play | So Go On | 00:00 Tools | |
51154461 | Play | Mulnomah | 00:00 Tools | |
51154447 | Play | Chorine, My Sheba Queen | 00:00 Tools | |
8359897 | Play | Will Johnson - Just to Know What You've Been Dreaming (from the archives) | 00:00 Tools | |
8359863 | Play | Alabama Crusade | 00:00 Tools | |
51154448 | Play | What You've Been Dreaming | 00:00 Tools | |
8359832 | Play | Elmer Gantry: Act I Scene 1: So she… (Elmer, Men's Chorus, Frank, Bully) | 00:00 Tools | |
8359862 | Play | Blackest Sparrow - Darkest Night | 00:00 Tools | |
8359883 | Play | Iso Residue (acoustic) | 00:00 Tools | |
51154452 | Play | Trust To Lose | 00:00 Tools | |
87155369 | Play | Patient Patient Man | 00:00 Tools | |
51154454 | Play | Home | 00:00 Tools | |
51154455 | Play | Atlanta | 00:00 Tools | |
8359985 | Play | Hatches & Secrets Galore | 00:00 Tools | |
8359910 | Play | Blood Can Push | 00:00 Tools | |
8359859 | Play | I Heard the Bells | 00:00 Tools | |
8359872 | Play | Hatchets & Secrets Galore | 00:00 Tools | |
51154458 | Play | 34 Blues | 00:00 Tools | |
8359881 | Play | Intro | 00:00 Tools | |
8359841 | Play | Elmer Gantry: Act I Scene 2: Who's the man among us has not battled for the Lord? (Men's Chorus, Rev. Baines, Elmer, Frank, Eddie, Lulu) | 00:00 Tools | |
51154459 | Play | Why | 00:00 Tools | |
51154460 | Play | Never Talking To You Again | 00:00 Tools | |
8359882 | Play | Governess / Villainess | 00:00 Tools | |
51154463 | Play | Reflection | 00:00 Tools | |
87155370 | Play | Uinta | 00:00 Tools | |
8359937 | Play | Just to Know You've Been Dreaming | 00:00 Tools | |
8359987 | Play | To Copeland Lines | 00:00 Tools | |
8359924 | Play | On Caledonia | 00:00 Tools | |
51154466 | Play | Let You Win | 00:00 Tools | |
87155372 | Play | Filled With A Falcon's Dream | 00:00 Tools | |
51154467 | Play | Feel Too Young to Die | 00:00 Tools | |
8359802 | Play | "Scorpion" (Live at American Songwriter) | 00:00 Tools | |
51154468 | Play | I Did A Terrible Thing (by The Paper Chase) | 00:00 Tools | |
51154469 | Play | You Will Be Here, Mine (live) | 00:00 Tools | |
51154470 | Play | Under Wing | 00:00 Tools | |
51154471 | Play | Darker Side | 00:00 Tools | |
87155371 | Play | Hey-O, Hi | 00:00 Tools | |
8359852 | Play | Nothing But Godzilla | 00:00 Tools | |
51154473 | Play | storytime | 00:00 Tools | |
51154474 | Play | Commadore | 00:00 Tools | |
51154498 | Play | It’s a Pretty Fucked Skyline | 00:00 Tools | |
89200655 | Play | Middle Distance | 00:00 Tools | |
51154487 | Play | Bus Stop | 00:00 Tools | |
51154475 | Play | "You Will Be Here, Mine" | 00:00 Tools | |
8359844 | Play | Elmer Gantry: Act I Scene 4: Vessels of service, great and small (Chorus, Ice Cream Vendor, Revival Worker, Revival Singer, Child, Sharon, Elmer, Keely Family Singers, Lulu, Frank) | 00:00 Tools | |
51154476 | Play | Phico Manitoba | 00:00 Tools | |
8359838 | Play | Elmer Gantry: Act I Scene 3: When you hear the truth do you know it? (Elmer, Frank, Lulu) | 00:00 Tools | |
51154477 | Play | WOXY.com Lounge Act - Will Johnson | 00:00 Tools | |
8359864 | Play | Governess-Villainess | 00:00 Tools | |
51154478 | Play | Glacial Slurs | 00:00 Tools | |
8359922 | Play | Rerun Pills | 00:00 Tools | |
8359858 | Play | Take the Maps and Run | 00:00 Tools | |
51154479 | Play | Never Divide | 00:00 Tools | |
8359860 | Play | Iso-Residue | 00:00 Tools | |
51154480 | Play | Governess/Villainess | 00:00 Tools | |
51154481 | Play | I See Through You | 00:00 Tools | |
51154482 | Play | Gas Blowin' Out Of Our Eyes | 00:00 Tools | |
8359968 | Play | Fly My Sweet Love | 00:00 Tools | |
8359962 | Play | Elmer Gantry: Act II Scene 3: Is belief a gift? (Frank) | 00:00 Tools | |
51154483 | Play | What Do You Need | 00:00 Tools | |
51154484 | Play | gas blowing out of your eyes | 00:00 Tools | |
87155373 | Play | Hey-O, Hi- O | 00:00 Tools | |
8359906 | Play | 05-Karcher's Contacts | 00:00 Tools | |
8359851 | Play | Elmer Gantry: Act I Scene 5: And God said, "Build me a tabernacle!" (Sharon, T.J. Rigg, Men's Chorus, Rev. Baines, Elmer) | 00:00 Tools | |
8359861 | Play | Cross Path | 00:00 Tools | |
51154504 | Play | Thug Life Pt 2 | 00:00 Tools | |
8359915 | Play | 07-River Koltolwash | 00:00 Tools | |
51154485 | Play | Nothin But Godzilla | 00:00 Tools | |
51154486 | Play | 10-The Yellow Signals | 00:00 Tools | |
51154488 | Play | Philo Manitoba (Daytrotter Session) | 00:00 Tools | |
51154503 | Play | Its A Pretty Fucked Skyline | 00:00 Tools | |
8359877 | Play | [Track 11] | 00:00 Tools | |
8359868 | Play | [Track 6] | 00:00 Tools | |
89200656 | Play | Filled with a Falcoln's Dreams | 00:00 Tools | |
51154489 | Play | Philco Manitoba | 00:00 Tools | |
8359871 | Play | Elmer Gantry: Act II: Introduction | 00:00 Tools | |
51154490 | Play | tuning | 00:00 Tools | |
8359869 | Play | Elmer Gantry: Act II Scene 1: Knock, knock. Here I am with the goods. (Elmer, Sharon) | 00:00 Tools | |
8359955 | Play | Elmer Gantry: Act II Scene 6: Oh, Lordy (T.J. Rigg, Worker 1, Worker 2) | 00:00 Tools | |
8359970 | Play | Twenty Circles To The Ground | 00:00 Tools | |
87155375 | Play | You Vs Off The Cuff | 00:00 Tools | |
51154491 | Play | The Re-Run Pills (Daytrotter Session) | 00:00 Tools | |
51154492 | Play | Emma Jane (Daytrotter Session) | 00:00 Tools | |
8359894 | Play | Sleep Awhile | 00:00 Tools | |
51154502 | Play | Chalked Lineswaxed Sun | 00:00 Tools | |
51154493 | Play | Closing | 00:00 Tools | |
51154494 | Play | Just To Know What You've Been Dreaming - Will Johnson | 00:00 Tools | |
8359870 | Play | Elmer Gantry: Act I Scene 6: Sweetheart? Eddie? What are you doing? (Lulu, Eddie) | 00:00 Tools | |
8359898 | Play | Elmer Gantry: Act II Scene 5: Dear God, look into my heart (Sharon, Elmer) | 00:00 Tools | |
51154495 | Play | What You Reckon, What You Breathe | 00:00 Tools | |
51154496 | Play | Murder_of_Tides | 00:00 Tools | |
51154497 | Play | D.Boon-free | 00:00 Tools | |
8359886 | Play | Upton To Riverhead | 00:00 Tools | |
8359953 | Play | Going Back Song | 00:00 Tools | |
51154499 | Play | Blood Can Push (Lounge) | 00:00 Tools | |
51154500 | Play | Vultures Wait (Daytrotter Session) | 00:00 Tools | |
87155376 | Play | Call Call Call | 00:00 Tools | |
8359969 | Play | WOXY.com Lounge Act | 00:00 Tools | |
51154501 | Play | Just to Know What You've Been Dreaming (from the archives) | 00:00 Tools | |
8359853 | Play | Awakening the Body, Pt. 1 | 00:00 Tools | |
89200657 | Play | It's A Pretty Fucked Skyline | 00:00 Tools | |
8359865 | Play | Fly My Sweet Dove | 00:00 Tools | |
8359846 | Play | Scorpion (Live at American Songwriter) | 00:00 Tools | |
89200658 | Play | The Treaty Loose Talk | 00:00 Tools | |
51154505 | Play | D. Boon-Free | 00:00 Tools | |
8359974 | Play | 11_Fly_My_Sweet_Love | 00:00 Tools | |
89200659 | Play | Rock And Roll Eyes | 00:00 Tools | |
51154506 | Play | Bastrop 1 | 00:00 Tools | |
51154507 | Play | Independence Day | 00:00 Tools | |
8359909 | Play | Elmer Gantry: Act II Scene 2: Left, left; left, right, left. (Tour Guide, Women's Chorus, Elmer, Sharon, Frank, T.J. Rigg, Eddie, Lulu, Rev. Baines, Mrs. Baines) | 00:00 Tools | |
87155378 | Play | Lenore's Lullaby | 00:00 Tools | |
8359943 | Play | Elmer Gantry: Epilogue: Dr. Binch. Great pleasure (Elmer, Dr. Binch, Chorus) | 00:00 Tools | |
51154508 | Play | Blackest Sparrow | 00:00 Tools | |
51154509 | Play | 01_Catherine_Dupree | 00:00 Tools | |
51154510 | Play | Closing Down My House - Will Johnson | 00:00 Tools |
Will Johnson is the frontman of both the Alt-Country bands Centro-Matic and South San Gabriel. He played drums in the band Funland prior to these groups and has played solo throughout his career. He recently released an album with Magnolia Electric Co. frontman Jason Molina under the name Molina & Johnson. He is also the performing drummer for the band Monsters of Folk.Will Johnson’s latest solo album, Swan City Vampires, is distinguished by its immediacy and intimacy. Crisp, measured acoustic guitars cushion the Austin-based singer-songwriter’s equally precise, conspiratorial vocals, while keening pedal steel, droning electric guitars, and the occasional askew keyboard add color. The results fall somewhere in the cracks between Neil Young and Crazy Horse noise hurricanes, road-worn folk songs, and low-key alt-country barnstorming. More tellingly, Swan City Vampires begins with a bracing, two-minute instrumental track, “Paradise, Basically.” Jagged electric guitar chords ripped apart by distortion and static dominate the song, aggression that’s tempered by an unsettled, minor-key piano melody hovering just underneath the surface. It’s not necessarily the easiest entry into an album, but make no mistake: This tone and sound—which Johnson describes as “pretty ugly”—is entirely deliberate. “The album is a little reckless out of the gate, with the first song, and I wanted that to be the case,” he says. “I wanted there to be some discomfort, some uncertainty and some oddity.” In one sense, this approach is the result of Johnson’s diverse musical collaborations—including Monsters Of Folk with My Morning Jacket’s Jim James and Bright Eyes’ Conor Oberst; Overseas with David Bazan and Matt and Bubba Kadane; and a duo project with the late Jason Molina. However, Swan City Vampires’ tension and doubt more obviously reflect the changes Johnson himself went through, both personally and professionally, as the album took shape. In early 2014, his mother passed away, while later that year, his band of nearly 20 years, Centro-matic, called it a day. Both of these events are referenced directly on Swan City Vampires. The melancholic, piano-curled “(Made Us Feel Like) Kings” is an elegy for his group’s musical achievements, while “The Watchman” is a tribute to his late mother. The latter song is particularly poignant: It blooms from slightly frayed acoustic guitar and lilting sonic whirrs into a barrage of electric guitar pelted with distraught keyboard zaps—conveying the messiness of emotional catharsis, where grief and relief combine in imperfect ways. “When the record was coming together, I was dealing with loss and a lot of uncertainty,” Johnson says. “It was a strange time, emotionally. I didn’t necessarily know what I wanted the album to transmit. There was a lot of raw emotion flying around. For the first time, I didn’t have some sort of grand picture or plan for the whole record. I wanted to get as much down as I could and figure it out later.” Perhaps as a result, Swan City Vampire’s recording sessions were brisk and economical. The album was recorded and mixed in two separate three-day sessions with different engineers—John Congleton (The Paper Chase, St. Vincent, Modest Mouse) and Britton Beisenherz (Monahans)—with additional contributions from Phosphorescent’s Ricky Ray Jackson and Johnson’s long-time creative foil, drummer Matt Pence. It marked the first time Johnson had ever done a record in this split-session fashion. “I was a little self-aware that it might have a patchwork quilt kind of feel to it,” he admits. “But it wound up still feeling cohesive to me once I put all the songs together and sequenced them.” What makes this cohesion even more remarkable is that Swan City Vampire’s songs were written during different points in Johnson’s life. Several date from as far back as six years ago, when he was living in a little frame house in Bastrop, Texas, before he was married and became a father; others emerged more in the present-day, “right near the finish line” of the album. “There are some different perspectives, I suppose, in the writing,” he says. “The writing itself came from different viewpoints—or different vistas.” However, Swan City Vampires does have some common thematic threads, including working through restlessness and major life changes, and trying to figure out what’s next after the familiar’s been displaced. Yet more than ever, Johnson is comfortable embracing the unfamiliar—as he does on the forthright “You vs. Off The Cuff,” when he sings the lyric, “How perfect it is to see you again.” “I’ve never sung a line like that,” Johnson says. “It made me uncomfortable demoing it for the first time, but in a good way—in a way that I was finally unafraid to sing a line like that. There have been a lot of phases of my songwriting life where I probably would’ve rolled my eyes and turned away from that. But for whatever reason, with all that was going on in my personal life, at the time it felt exactly right to sing a line like that.” Some nice words… “Will Johnson is one of my favorite songwriters on Earth, and this album is as literate and addictive as any of his previous work. These songs are honest and specific while remaining open to multiple layers of interpretation. The melodies are beautiful and memorable, and Will’s voice is a complex and delicate instrument. As a long-time fan, it makes me happy to know that Will is still challenging himself to make music that truly can be called art.” – Jason Isbell “Swan City Vampires, the new solo album from former Centro-matic frontman Will Johnson finds him in peak form. At times as beautiful and melodious as he’s ever been, at others with a primal immediacy beyond anything I’ve ever heard him do. Raw and urgent, this album is a thing of immense beauty that only gets better with each repeated listen. This could end up being my favorite album he’s ever made.” – Patterson Hood (Drive-By Truckers) “Swan City Vampires is another fantastic release from Will Johnson. It’s melancholy, hazy but hopeful. It’s tuneful, complex, and beautiful. At times it seems to me like a fever dream, but with sudden stunning moments of clarity. I’ve been listening to it a lot in the early mornings, but I think it’s also a dusk record, as it’s shadows reveal new things each time. Scary like a vampire, pretty like a swan, buzzing like a city. Will again delights and surprises.” – Craig Finn Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.