Centro-matic

     You may recall from my Thanksgiving post that I was thankful for the Will Johnson living room show, which my wife and I attended in September. He is my favorite songwriter and my wife had no idea who he was, but came along for the experience. It's not often that you can see your favorite songwriter perform in someone's living room. I thought about explaining to her that it would be like her seeing Neil Finn in someone's living room, but that would have been a ridiculous analogy. There were maybe 20 people at the Will Johnson show, whereas there would be thousands of people trying to cram into a living room for Neil Finn. It was awesome for me though, because I actually got to talk to him for a minute. There was a merch table set up and they had a couple of Will's solo cd's that I didn't have, so I wanted to buy them. The girl at the table asked Will how much they were and he came over. Now, I kinda have a thing where I don't feel comfortable talking to a performer who I really admire, because I don't know what to say without sounding like a d-bag. In fact, my wife went with me to see Robert Pollard in Detroit and he was just walking around during the opener's set. She kept badgering me to say something to him every time he came within two feet of me, but I was afraid he'd think I was a jerk or something so I didn't. Anyhow, Will was very nice and I told him that now I had all of his stuff (which I remembered later I still don't have Redo the Stacks). He said he would soon take care of that because he has projects coming out in 2013. I also mentioned that I saw his band Centro-matic last year and he thanked me for my support.
     Will Johnson is another extremely prolific songwriter. Apart from his band Centro-matic, the same band also records as South San Gabriel. They use South San Gabriel as a vehicle for their slower, atmospheric songs. He also records as a solo artist and has collaborated with Jason Molina, Jay Farrar, Anders Parker and Jim James, to name a few. In 2008, he released an album called Dual Hawks which one disc was Centro-matic songs and the other disc was South San Gabriel songs. He said that the two bands are like a hawk; one is quiet and majestic like a hawk in flight and the other attacks like a hawk after it's prey. I'm paraphrasing, but it sounded cool when he said it. I prefer the Centro-matic material. It has a raw, ramshackle sound, like a bar band playing behind chicken wire with drunk dudes throwing bottles at them. The drums and guitars are up front and I like that a lot. The South San Gabriel material is, for the most part, devoid of drums and they bring in additional musicians to play strings and stuff. It's good, but I have to be in the right mood to listen to it. Then his solo material splits the difference. If you go to the Centro-matic website, there is a sampler of their music that you can listen to or download.
     I would recommend to my kids that they start with Centro-matic and if they like it try the other stuff. My favorites are Dual Hawks, Fort Recovery, The Static vs. The Strings and All The Falsest Hearts Can Try. Here's a breakdown of the standout songs from each album.

DH: Rat Patrol and DJs, Remind Us Alive(probably my fav Will Johnson song), All Your Farewells
        and Twenty-Four
FR: Covered Up In Mines, Calling Thermatico, Patience for the Ride and I See-Through You
S vs S: Calling Up the bastards, Wrecking This Show, D. Boon-Free and Curb Your Turbulence
ATFHCT: Blisters May Come, Call The Legion in Tonight and Most Everyone Will Find

     One of my dreams is to be able to interview Centro-matic and write a book about them. I already have a title, "Patience For The Ride". Anyhow, if you aren't familiar with Will Johnson I would strongly encourage you to check out his songwriting. Peace.