Music Makers

Three Music Thingz with oldphone

Whoa dude, it's another rendition of Three Music Thingz, the blogseries where I ask musicians for three thingz that are essential to their music-making.

Today we have oldphone! oldphone is Gregory Johnson, an L.A.-based artist who just released a new album, I hope the world can make room for us, on Lonely Ghost Records. Imagine using dial-up internet to load some contemplative guitar tabs on one of those candy-colored 2000s iMacs, printing them onto iridescent paper, and playing them all night in your bedroom (with your headphones plugged into your amp, so you don't wake anyone else up, of course). Quiet/loud, raw/digital, sweet/sour, that's the general hyperemo vibe of IHTWCMRFU.

To me, the standout feature of oldphone's music is the vocal production, which is handled with the delicateness of someone painting a miniature with a toothpick. On tracks like "never again, only forward" and "urchildhoodisnevercomingback / a loft", Johnson's voice is pitched up, then warped in a way that feels almost tender; on "i can't breathe (can you make some room?)", it becomes a ragged howl that seems to crack the limits of sound itself before disappearing into the track. The mutability of the vocals suggests a continual impulse to keep trying to figure one's shit out, or perhaps more accurately, an acceptance of the idea that life changes way too fast for that to ever happen completely. Trying to find ease in the discomfort is all we can do; as Johnson sings on "a sunset / the trees," "I just wish that I could let it be."

Johnson shared their three thingz with the blog...behold...

Checking Ego
An informal hierarchy can sometimes form within music scenes which can bring out very self centered behavior. Whether it be refusing to support bands/artist you deem "below" you, or supporting shady people for "career" growth. It's important to remember what we are doing in the grand scope of things and that community is the most important thing we can achieve out of making art.
Mixing different things you like.
Oldphone exists because of my strange taste in music. The mixing of my love of emo, punk indie, hip hop, and electronic music is something that took 20 years of my music "career" to finally do and fuck, does it feel good. Being able to experiment with jpop, visual kei, and anime song samples is something I never thought could happen, but here we are. Experimentation is the soul of creativity.
Art for art's sake
Make the song. Write down the idea. Draw the thing. Paint your memories. Just do something. I've found just doing something everyday is the best way to get genuine statements out in the world. Everything doesn't have to be this grand message. A song about a nice night you had with friends; a painting of a desert scene you saw driving with your boo. We crave this relatability and validation. Sometimes these are answers for people. Sometimes like reading a novel can make something that's been weighing on you finally make sense. If you are blessed with the need to express yourself artistically, do it. Because people want to see/hear/feel/taste it.

Thank you oldphone! Listen to I hope the world can make room for us.

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