All Around Sound is Turning Four - Day 3: J Fernandez

If left to my own devices, I probably wouldn't have ever discovered J Fernandez. While a fan of bedroom pop, there's something about Fernandez's stylistic psychedelic inflected type that leads me to believe I would never have stumbled upon such a thing on my own. The credit for point my ears in the right direction lies solely on Caleb from Lands & Peoples who first recommended show mates Thin Hymns before quickly following that recommendation with Fernandez. Needless to say I was enamored - Fernandez music scratched an itch I wasn't even aware I had; satisfying the total suspension of genre that results in instantaneous affection. And that was all before I had the chance to actually see him. I had the pleasure of catching J Fernandez and band at CMJ and his live show was electric, intricate and precise and a distinctive take on the tepid bedroom jams imbuing them with a galvanizing fire, a charming fervor. And with my approval totally won, I did the only thing I could think to do: I asked him for a mix.


J Fernandez' Contribution:

I recommend this mix for zoning out while creating excel spreadsheets.

Now Streaming: J Fernandez - No Luck/Olympic Village

Remember J Fernandez: Thin Hymns guitarist/keyboardist Justin Fernandez solo bedroom project? Well, you should. If not, read all about it here. If you were hoping to listen to more of Fernandez' melodic brand of one-man soft rock, today's the day. Morning Ritual is putting out No Luck and Olympic Village, two cassette EP previously only available on limited edition cassettes out into the ether as a double EP.

Which is totally a good thing. Because frankly, the world needs a lot more J Fernandez. The occasional foray into dreamy soundscapes, random bursts of sunny jams, and just stellar musicianship are always pluses in my book and should definitely hover around musicsphere for a lot longer. Here's hoping J Fernandez is working on new tunes because though the double EP just came out, I'm already hooked and eager for more.

You can stream the No Luck/Olympic Village double EP right now via Morning Ritual Records:

Pitstop: J Fernandez

Yesterday I featured Chicago experimental pop quintet Thin Hymns and apparently they're a band that just keeps on giving. After following the tip from Caleb from Lands & Peoples that led to my newfound love of Thin Hymns, he followed up with something equally as good. Turns out Justin Fernandez, Thin Hymns' guitarist/keyboardist has a solo project appropriately named J Fernandez.

Have you ever heard old school Fleet Foxes EP era Fleet Foxes? Songs like "Textbook Love" and "In the Hot, Hot Rays" with their sunkissed psychedelic rock slant are precisely what you can look forward to in J Fernandez's music (most notably "Wasting the New Year"). But instead of jangly guitars, Fernandez's music doesn't prominently feature them. Relying more on a whatever's clever form of musical composition. 

"No Luck" is a harmony-laden sprawl that which gradually gains complexity as it saunters forth, adding brass along its plodding drums and Fernandez' croon while "Jewelry Watches Gold" and "Fading Out" are Real Estate-esque soft rock jams. 

For a bedroom project, J Fernandez's music has a surprisingly wide scope. From the sparse "Olympic Village People" to the the 70's reminiscent rock of "Wasting The Year" on the same release, to the simplicity of "No Luck" to the complex, layered beast that is "Real Flowers", J Fernandez's music output is dynamic and unpredictable while nevertheless remaining unequivocably good. Here's hoping there's scores and scores of new music to come from Fernandez.     

J Fernandez currently has two cassettes (No Luck and Olympic Village)  out and his music is enough to make me change my whole anti-cassette stance. Luckily if cassettes aren't your thing, J Fernandez is releasing them as a double EP via Morning Ritual. Fans of good music rejoice as J Fernandez's No Luck/Olympic Village double EP will be out October 29th