Songwriter JayWood (a.k.a. Jeremy Haywood-Smith) has detailed a new EP. The Winnipeg artist will share Some Days on April 23 through Royal Mountain Records/Captured Tracks.
The five-song Some Days was initially written and recorded in 2015, as Haywood-Smith sought to channel the anxiety of personal upheaval into songwriting.
What began as a bedroom recording project of sad jangle-pop songs later evolved and was re-recorded in the psych-funk style listeners will hear next month.
"I had to write the EP and learn how to record at the same time, which you can definitely hear in the original recordings," Haywood-Smith recalled of the self-directed sessions with a guitar, a MIDI controller and a borrowed MacBook. "The songs were kinda messy, but I just went with the first ideas that came to mind. I made a rule for myself not to go back on anything, because I didn't have the time to tweak around."
The EP's opening title track arrives today alongside a video directed by Eric Peterson, following individual characters through their respective identity crises.
"The theme of 'push and pull' that is present throughout Some Days, appears in the storyline of each of these characters," Haywood-Smith shared with KEXP. "You witness them try to overcome obstacles if only to end up where they started. It was great to have these connecting storylines because it gives folks a chance to meet the band in a new atmosphere."
He added: "It was important to me that we captured the juxtaposition of myself and these different tendencies. Some days I feel like the 'doer,' and other days I feel like an observer. Wherever that takes you, you're heading back to yourself at the end of the day."
Some Days:
1. Some Days
2. Creeps
3. Dreams
4. What You Do To Me
5. Some Days (Acoustic)
Pre-order Some Days.
The five-song Some Days was initially written and recorded in 2015, as Haywood-Smith sought to channel the anxiety of personal upheaval into songwriting.
What began as a bedroom recording project of sad jangle-pop songs later evolved and was re-recorded in the psych-funk style listeners will hear next month.
"I had to write the EP and learn how to record at the same time, which you can definitely hear in the original recordings," Haywood-Smith recalled of the self-directed sessions with a guitar, a MIDI controller and a borrowed MacBook. "The songs were kinda messy, but I just went with the first ideas that came to mind. I made a rule for myself not to go back on anything, because I didn't have the time to tweak around."
The EP's opening title track arrives today alongside a video directed by Eric Peterson, following individual characters through their respective identity crises.
"The theme of 'push and pull' that is present throughout Some Days, appears in the storyline of each of these characters," Haywood-Smith shared with KEXP. "You witness them try to overcome obstacles if only to end up where they started. It was great to have these connecting storylines because it gives folks a chance to meet the band in a new atmosphere."
He added: "It was important to me that we captured the juxtaposition of myself and these different tendencies. Some days I feel like the 'doer,' and other days I feel like an observer. Wherever that takes you, you're heading back to yourself at the end of the day."
Some Days:
1. Some Days
2. Creeps
3. Dreams
4. What You Do To Me
5. Some Days (Acoustic)
Pre-order Some Days.