The Musical Stylings of Jonny Q

Tom Petty. I forgot Tom Petty. I love him.

In unrelated news, we got another pug. She’s five and her owner was giving her away. I hope Lu doesn’t get jealous. This’ll be fun.

All right…contrary to what Brendan said a couple of days ago, I haven’t forgotten about this journal. It’s just that between Christmas, the car crash, and everything else, I haven’t been too musically productive over the last month or so. Until now.

-ITEM! I’m doing a mini-tour at area Borders stores. (Which immediately removes any sweet indie cred I didn’t have anyway). Greensboro March 5, Charlotte March 19, Chapel Hill April 1. I’m pumped - it’s the first time in a long time I’ve had multiple bookings at once. Now I need to contact a couple more people and I might have four or five lined up. I’d feel like a rock star. One problem with the Borders stuff though. Most of my sets are about 60/40 original/cover (I’d like to lean more toward originals soon). I always play Mess and occasionally Best Imitation in my covers. I can’t play them in Chapel Hill without feeling really weird. Bad idea, right?

-ITEM! I’ve half-finished a new song called This Town. The music has been swimming around in my head since one weekend senior year at Centre when I recorded some random stuff on the computer. The lyrics have been swimming around (the first two lines, anyway) since the following summer when I walked dogs all day for money. I like it, and I’ll post it once I get a decent recording of it. Also, I’ve got lyrics partially written to two new songs with the working titles of C Song and New Orleans. Hopefully hopefully hopefully I’ll become semiprolific these next couple of weeks and have a host of new songs to play in March. Second album, here I come! That means I can produce a greatest hits album, right? Two solo works, a live Short Story, a crapload of Grandma’s genius tapes, and two Rhythm Method songs? (And B, those songs will be posted soon enough).

-ITEM! I’m still having trouble defining my style when putting together press kits for getting gigs, but I’m becoming more clear on what albums from my past define my sound. At least my ideal sound in my head. The albums/artists that really move me in my heart, head, or pants right now are Elvis Costello, God Lives UNderwater’s Life in the So-Called Space Age, Pearl Jam once again, of course BNL and Ben, although I don’t sound like them, Sufjan Stevens, Angie, Jude, and most recently Uncle Tupelo and Son Volt. I can’t say I love Jay Farrar’s voice, but the words to Whiskey Bottle and the whole feel of Windfall. Man.

Thanks for reading this far. My next step is writing and practicing. I’m going to try to get some new media up here soon too. I’d like to use this site in my press kits. That’ll take vigilance. We’ll see. Love to everyone. email me.