In 2019, Royal Mountain Records launched a mental health fund for its artists, providing artists with money to use for therapy and wellness. Proof of that program's success has now arrived in the form of Jo Passed's new single "Weekend," which arrives after a seven-year break between albums and a period of personal burnout.
"With Sub Pop and Royal Mountain, I was given the keys to a very amazing race car and then given the opportunity to drive very fast next to a bunch of other fast-moving cars," Jo Passed mastermind Jo Hirayabashi 平林 tells Exclaim! "I had a lot of real energy going in, fuelled partially by a variety of mythologies and senses that I should really see through what is — in many people's eyes — a major dream come true."
The Vancouver songwriter and producer had this momentum stalled by what they call "a variety of phrases beginning with 'should,'" leading music to become a source of responsibility rather than creativity — yet another manifestation of "contemporary neoliberal burnout society."
Passed "had to step away." An album, started before the release of 2018's Their Prime, was scrapped; Hirayabashi cancelled a 2019 tour and focused on therapy.
Hirayabashi eventually found inspiration after seeing Neil Young's easygoing solo acoustic show. "He basically brought his living room on tour and roamed around the stage, feeling out what songs to play," they recall. "I can definitely be a bit overly obsessive and plan-y, so I took a lot of inspiration from Neil here and wrote a new set of solo material in an effort to strip away all the 'shoulds' and return to a pure connection to songwriting."
Those new songs provided the basis for a solo tour in 2019, and although Hirayabashi didn't record them — save for one that's on Jo Passed's upcoming album — they got the gears turning once again. Hirayabashi worked as a videographer for numerous Vancouver bands, produced albums for Debra-Jean Creelman and Yawn, composed scores for dance pieces, and played as a backing musician with Zoon, Kandle and Limblifter. A sophomore album was delayed by the pandemic.
"Now, it's been years of not trying to fight my energy but instead hone and guide it, and this new LP has been a big part of that process," Hirayabashi says of their upcoming album.
The grungy, alt-rocking "Weekend" isn't on that album — rather, it's a decade-old song that Hirayabashi has been tinkering with in various versions over the years. But it represents a fresh start after many years of personal and artistic growth, and a hint of what Jo Passed has in store. Hear it below, and see the artist's upcoming tour dates.
Jo Passed 2025 Tour Dates:
01/30 Portland, OR - Lollipop Shoppe
01/31 Seattle, WA - Baba Yaga
02/01 Vancouver, BC - KW Studios