Will Johnson (musician)

Will Johnson
Born 23 March 1971
Kennett, Missouri
United States
Genres Indie rock, alt-country
Occupation(s) Singer-songwriter
Painter
Years active 1988-present
Labels Undertow Music Collective
Idol Records
Quality Park Records
Rounder Records
Steve Records
Munich Records
Misra Records
Cooking Vinyl
Houston Party
Sixgunlover
Secretly Canadian
Navigational Transmissions
Associated acts Centro-matic
South San Gabriel
Undertow Orchestra
Monsters of Folk
New Multitudes
Overseas
Website will-johnson.com
Notable instruments
Guitar, drums

Will Johnson (born March 23, 1971)[1] is an American musician, singer-songwriter and painter who is the lead singer of the bands Centro-matic and South San Gabriel. Called "one of the most prolific artists in American indie rock",[2] Johnson has also released solo records, and is a member of the bands Monsters of Folk, New Multitudes and Overseas, and has also performed as part of the Undertow Orchestra.

Music career

Early music

Johnson began playing drums, piano and sang in his church choir at an early age. After moving to Killeen, Texas, from Kennett, Missouri, he was a founding member and drummer for jangle-rock band The Benjamins. They released two cassettes in 1988 and 1989 before Johnson left to attend the University of North Texas. While there, Johnson played in bands such as Polyester, Salt Lick, The Dooms UK, and was a founding member of Baboon.

Funland

On Super Bowl Sunday 1991, Johnson joined Peter Schmidt and Clark Vogeler to form the band Melt, which changed its name to Funland in 1992. Funland signed with Arista Records that year, releasing the EP Sweetness in March 1993. The band toured regularly in the US and released its only full-length album, The Funland Band, on Steve Records in 1995. After five and a half years, Funland disbanded in June 1996.

Centro-matic

Centro-matic began as a four-track cassette project when Johnson returned to college in May 1995. It was the first time he had written and sung songs, and later that year saw the release of the cassette Non-Directional Jetpack Race. A handful of 7-inch releases followed, and Johnson began playing live under the Centro-matic moniker in March 1996 as a solo performance with electric guitar and vocals. In December 1996, Johnson recorded the first Centro-matic full length album, Redo The Stacks. Johnson played all the instruments except violin (Scott Danbom) and cello (Lindsay Romig), with longtime friend Matt Pence engineering the lo-fi record.

In February 1997, Johnson started performing full-band Centro-matic shows with Mark Hedman on bass guitar and Pence on drums. Choosing to keep things informal, the band's first rehearsal was held after its second show. In March 1997, Danbom joined the band on piano, fiddle, bass guitar and vocals. Centro-matic continued to record and tour extensively in the United States and Europe under the same lineup until deciding to disband in 2014.

The band released ten albums and five EPs, plus several 7-inch recordings, cassettes and compilation and soundtrack appearances. The band worked with Jeff Powell, Anders Parker and Scott Solter. The full lengths Navigiational, B-sides compilation Static vs. The Strings Vol. 1 and All The Falsest Hearts Can Try were recorded at Jay Farrar's studio in Millstadt, Illinois. The band subsequently recorded most of its material at The Echo Lab in Argyle, Texas.

South San Gabriel

Main article: South San Gabriel

With his Centro-matic bandmates, Johnson formed the band South San Gabriel in the spring of 2001. It resulted from Centro-matic wanting to collaborate with and include other musicians while experimenting with a more spacious and atmospheric approach to writing and recording. South San Gabriel has a fluid lineup, with the band performing with anywhere from 3-10 members. South San Gabriel has released three full length albums, plus EPs and singles.

Molina and Johnson

Main article: Molina and Johnson

Johnson collaborated with songwriter Jason Molina for the joint album Molina and Johnson, released on the Secretly Canadian label in November 2009. The two connected at the SXSW festival in 2003 or 2004, on the corner of Sixth Street and Red River in Austin, Texas. They were in regular contact in 2007 and recorded the album over a week and a half in early 2008.[1]

Of Molina, Johnson said what resonated was Molina's dedication to songwriting and his work ethic, calling him a "whirlwind of dedication and activity".[1] Another collaboration was discussed but it never came to fruition before Molina's death in 2013.[1]

Undertow Orchestra

Johnson has performed as part of the Undertow Orchestra with David Bazan, Vic Chesnutt and Mark Eitzel. Johnson met Chestnutt in 1999 at the Gypsy Tea Room in Dallas. Chesnutt was a fan of Eitzel's music, and the two were long-time friends.

According to Johnson, Bob Andrews, the manager for the four musicians, had the idea in 2005 to create the Undertow Orchestra from members of the Undertow Music Collective and go on tour as a true band, "warts and all". Johnson said Chesnutt was adamant that the shows not feature any solo performances, with the members working to play each other's songs as backing musicians.[1]

Monsters of Folk

Main article: Monsters of Folk

Johnson performed with indie supergroup Monsters of Folk as the drummer on a 2009 tour. The group includes Jim James, Conor Oberst, M. Ward and Mike Mogis. The band toured the US and Europe and performed on PBS show Austin City Limits in October 2010. Johnson became an official member of the band during that time.[3][4]

New Multitudes

Main article: New Multitudes

From 2009 to 2012, Johnson collaborated with Jay Farrar, Jim James and Anders Parker on the Woody Guthrie archive project New Multitudes. The project involved the four songwriters setting music to Guthrie's unrecorded lyrics, and was recorded in a number of locations. The tribute album was released in 2012 with a short US tour following.

Overseas

Main article: Overseas (band)

Johnson formed the band Overseas in 2009 with David Bazan and Matt and Bubba Kadane. An eponymous album was released in 2013.

Other

As part of Monsters of Folk, Johnson participated in Neil Young's Bridge School Benefit in 2009. At the benefit, Johnson reconnected with former babysitter and family friend Sheryl Crow, who is also from Johnson's hometown.[1]

Other activities

Since 2008 Johnson has produced a number of paintings, mostly centering on the subject of baseball and its history, which have been exhibited in group and solo art shows. An avid baseball fan as a child, he roots for the St. Louis Cardinals.[1]

Johnson said that he began creating baseball paintings in 2007 or 2008, wanting to pay tribute to some of his favorite players and stories — especially unheralded players — through folk art paintings. Friends commissioned some of the work, which led to art shows.[1]

Personal life

Johnson was born in Kennett, Missouri. When he was 11 years old his mother remarried and the family moved to the military town of Killeen, Texas.[1]

Johnson attended the University of North Texas where he was involved in in Denton's active music scene. He double majored in English and elementary education.[2]

As of 2013, Johnson currently lives in Austin, Texas.[1]

Discography

LPs
EPs
7" records
Cassettes
Soundtracks
Compilation appearances
Producer
Touring or guest musician
Guest musician/vocalist
Film appearances
Art shows

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 1.9 Gibbs, Otis (November 6, 2013). "Episode 56: Will Johnson" (Audio interview). Thanks For Giving a Damn with Otis Gibbs. Nashville, TN - Tracy Thomas' house: Soundcloud. Retrieved 7 November 2013.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Deming, Mark. "Will Johnson | Biography". Allmusic. All Media Network, LLC. Retrieved 7 November 2013.
  3. ↑ "Lounge Act Recap – Will Johnson". The Futurist: The Independent Rock Blog of Woxy.com. Woxy.com. January 25, 2010. Archived from the original on 7 November 2013. Retrieved 7 November 2013.
  4. ↑ "Will Johnson – WOXY Lounge Act (full session download)" (Audio interview - mp3). Lounge Act Recap – Will Johnson. Woxy.com. January 25, 2010. Archived from the original on 7 November 2013. Retrieved 7 November 2013.

External links

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