Whether on stage or behind the mixing desk, Jon Chesbro invites audiences into a world where every note is a brushstroke on the canvas of emotion. The Massachusetts multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and producer releases his new album Dryas on February 23, and the experimental, electronic, and mostly instrumental record is a departure from his work as Cosmic Vultures guitarist, showcasing a new complexity and depth in his solo musical compositions. Dryas can be consumed as a whole or in chapters, and a pair of visualizers, ‘MarchToVictory’ (featuring Derek Smith) and ‘Into The Mirror’, precede the album.
Written for Blood Makes Noise By Jon Chesbro
This album to me is me trying to break the shyness I’ve had for so long. I’ve always been nervous to share my music in fear of rejection. I finally came to a point and said ‘I don’t care what people think anymore’. I’m an artist I need to create and release otherwise I’m pent up with old art I should be moving on from.
One of my favorite producers Rick Ruben said “The goal of art isn’t to attain perfection. The goal is to share who we are. And how we see the world.” Ruben’s philosophy of art and music really inspires me. I don’t create for the viewer to find, I create for myself so the viewer can see the world a little differently. With that new thinking from Ruben I feel as though I can let go of that old feeling of being self conscious and set myself free.
The title Dryas represents that to me. The Younger Dryas, the last cataclysmic event on Earth, from between roughly 12,900 and 11,600 years ago, represents chaos and destruction. But also Dryas being a flower and something beautiful even when the world is harsh around you. I guess that last line pulls it all together.
“BlackHole”
When I wrote this, I was starting to get into sound design more and more. I also started watching Stranger Things. I thought “I can make an ‘80s synth bop” and I ended up putting my own flair to it, but overall really enjoyed the process of turning knobs and moving faders.
“MarchToVictory”
This song I had for so long, as well as “BlackHole” but for some reason I always would go back to this. I only had the beat and the strings. When I had a spout of creativity I took those elements and added guitar and other textures. Derek Smith really glued it together for me with the vocals.
“ICantFuckingLogIn”
This title makes me laugh. This was an older instrumental that I found and reformed. The title of the project always stayed the same. I can’t remember what I was trying to log into but hey I couldn’t fucking do it and now its a bop that reminds me of driving at night with all my windows down.Maybe I couldn’t log into the feeling then but now I can!
“CherryBlossom”
This song is an emotional rollercoaster for me. People always say make it longer at the end or make the middle shorter but the intense emotional rise I get out of it is fleeting. It always comes but never stays – and I feel like I captured that well. When I was growing up there were these beautiful cherry blossom trees that my friends and I used to climb on and I remember one day going out to go climb on them and they were cut down. This was a punch to the gut as a kid because it was just something we did all the time. It makes you realize nothing is forever and that you really never know when the last time you’ll do or see someone again. You never know when it will be the last time you play outside. That’s the feeling I get from this song. To my producer followers using Spitfire Audio…. Those plug-ins are insane. That’s how I got those beautiful cello sounds.
“SpeedOfLight”
This song gives me James Bond vibes. I don’t know why but it does. I feel like I should be elegantly walking into a casino knowing I’m gonna make a bunch of money. That never happens but the feeling is there. That solo at the end is probably my favorite that I’ve done on this record. It's short, sweet, and to the point.
“ILikeThis”
This is one of the first songs I wrote when I moved back to Massachusetts. It’s got a melancholy vibe but also sounds hopeful. I was kind of in a daze when I moved back as well. There’s a lot of colors in this and I feel like those sounds and movement and textures kind of represent that feeling of being in a haze and thinking about everything all at once.
“HereItIs”
I don’t know if anyone else does this but I listen to literally anything from country to hip-hop to jazz. I have no filter or elitism towards music. When making this song I was listening to underground boom bap tracks. I put my own eerie spin on it with some intense bass and cool rising textures. I want someone to rap on this like so bad. Like please someone remix this and rap over it, haha.
“IntoTheMirror”
Man this song is really cool because it totally sounds like it's in a movie. The people talking, the sounds of a television in the background. There’s an element of Foley work here. There really is a sense of placement within these songs. This album almost has its own cinematic universe and I feel like this song is the epitome of it all. It wraps it up all so nicely.
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Photo Credit: Zach Haberern