‘Freeway’ by Like Years | New Album, ‘Vicissitudes’
Exclusive track premiere of ‘Freeway’ by Like Years, taken from the upcoming album, ‘Vicissitudes,’ out April 28th, 2023.
‘Vicissitudes,’ the title of John Craig’s new album, is based on his father’s favorite word. “He used “vicissitudes” to describe life. How you handle the vicissitudes of life will determine how you live, how well you live and what you do with your life. I wouldn’t say I handle the vicissitudes of life exceptionally well, but I understand life operates in waves. Like everyone, I try to adapt and cope, even though the lows got lower during the pandemic. This album explores my personal struggles: insomnia, anxiety, existential angst. Writing these songs helped me find joy in life’s harder moments.”
Craig produced and recorded most of ‘Vicissitudes’ in his home studio, singing and playing most of the instruments himself. The drums and congas were played by Reinhardt Melz at Hallowed Halls in Portland, the studio run by Justin Phelps (Galactic, Cake), who engineered and mixed the record. Craig has always had an eclectic, improvisational approach and pulls out all the stops on the music he composed for this project. “I’d say it’s indie rock, moving toward cinematic synth pop, or maybe existentially angsty music you can dance to. When I’m writing, I imagine sunsets on the beach, or light dancing through the leaves of the trees in a forest.”
The eleven tracks of the album flow smoothly, a slowly unfolding suite of heartfelt tunes. Things open with the mellow R&B of ‘Freeway’. Expansive keyboard sounds and slide guitar fills suggest George Harrison sitting in with Motown’s Funk Brothers, with Craig’s buoyant vocal contrasting his uneasy observations of our slow slide into ecological oblivion.
“My first job after graduating from the University of Oregon was at Costco just south of Portland. I had to drive from my place on Hawthorne in Portland in my shitty old band touring van 15 miles down the freeway to work at in the produce department at the big box store. My shifts would be from 3am-8am, or 4am-9am. I was miserable. I’d sit in my van before my shift and would close my eyes as if to try and squeeze a little more rest in before packing boxes of lettuce on shelves. When I was sitting there, listening to the freeway in the background, with my eyes closed I thought that it sort of sounded like the ocean. I have always thought about the sound of the freeway like this ever since… like a mental trick to try and improve your surroundings, or situation. I sat on this potential lyric for like 10 years plus before the right song came along to flesh it out. I like the juxtaposition of nature and urban life and thinking about how everything comes in waves, even shitty jobs.”
“These songs are my most honest work” Craig said. “The album has a fuller, more alluring sound. I’m a bit seasoned now, so I know more about what I’m doing and who I am. I’m hoping listeners will resonate with my overall message: Life is hard but, despite that, it’s still fucking astonishing!”
After ‘Vicissitudes’ is released, Craig will begin working on his next project. “If I can get enough traction on this record, so that the next album doesn’t have to be entirely self-funded, that would feel like success. I want to make good music, and I have a lot more of it in me, but I don’t want to bankrupt myself doing it, although I probably would, if that was the only option. Nothing makes me feel more alive than creating music. I just hope the sounds I hear can find a home in the ears of other people as well.”
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