Can you tell us about the inspiration behind your latest album, and what themes or stories you aimed to convey through your music?

Over the last five years I’ve been working on a passion project, a reimagined album covering The Shaggs’ 1969 album “Philosophy of the World”. I’ve covered seven of these songs so far and have five more to complete before I finish all twelve of the songs on the album, the most recent being “We Have a Savior”. Before reading more, readers should look into the Shaggs story and their music in order to understand why I’m calling these “reimagined” covers. I have my opinions about the Shaggs, but I’ll let you interpret that for yourself. Lots of people have listened to their music because of the outlandish story or for the novelty of the way their recordings sound. I discovered the Shaggs in the same way, but in covering their music, I have found profound meaning and beauty despite the dissonance and apparent disorder. Their sound pulled me in when I was a young man because I was studying free jazz at the time, but I realize now that I also resonated with the thematic content that they wrote and sung about. Maybe it’s because I grew up in rural communities in the midwest or maybe it’s because a lot of the things were simply stated existential and philosophical questions? It was probably a combination of all three of those elements, but I told myself it was because they were “weird.”

Music often has the power to transport people to different places and times. Can you describe a moment in your life when a particular song or album had a profound impact on you?

Radioheads’ OK Computer – I discovered this album back when I was in high school. I saw a performance of The National Anthem on Saturday Night Live and was totally blown away because they had a live horn section! I was getting into jazz at that time playing trombone in jazz band but had also been playing in rock bands with my friends. When I saw Radiohead they blew my mind–a rock band that was utilizing free jazz! That performance led me to listen to their entire discography and OK Computer was one I listened to a ton. It was rock music, but it was full of dissonance and beautifully orchestrated. Their arrangements and song forms were a-typical of other popular music I was listening to. They really inspired me to keep studying jazz and to try to find ways to integrate it into the rock music that I was making with friends. I remember long days in the summer and going on drives in the countryside in Iowa blasting Ok Computer. Every time I put it on I’m transported to that time period.

Your lyrics often tell a story or convey a message. Can you share the story behind one of your songs and the inspiration that led to its creation?

For sure! I’ll share the story about “Tappin’ on a Glass Screen.” This song is on an EP I put out in 2020 called Songs of Invitation for Guitar Duet which is a collection of songs written for two guitars and two voices. I love writing and arranging for lots of instruments and voices with a more maximalist approach like on the Lots in Thought EP, but this EP was an attempt to restrict myself to only writing for a limited instrumentation. I also set out to do something that was a real creative challenge in that I wanted to write songs that I could use as a curriculum for my guitar students that both challenged them technically and also include wisdom that I wanted to impart to them.

I was writing these songs as I was coming out of a very unhealthy relationship with social media and a toxic music scene environment. I was grappling with all of the pitfalls in navigating a culture that places so much value on the cultivation of the online self and the individualistic self-oriented emphasis one must have to try to make it as an artist. I was reflecting on this and started intentionally distancing myself from putting time, energy, and importance on cultivating an online presence or persona. As an artist this is really hard to do because this is what gets people’s attention. A barrage of constant comparison is an awful thing to navigate no matter how successful you are.

At the same time I was writing these songs I had recently become a Christian and there is a lot of teaching in Christianity about not being overtaken with envy and cultivating a humble heart. I realized that even though I was using social media from a practical position as an artist, I was often caught up in envying other people and I wanted to break myself of that habit. So I was convicted and made an intentional change—I went from checking social media multiple times a day, posting frequently, and interacting with lots of people, to fasting from social media for long periods of time, posting infrequently and checking in maybe once or twice a week for five minutes at a time. That resulted in a lot more energy to be creative, and focus on improving relationships with people in my life as opposed to cultivating relationships online. It’s really difficult to fully be free from envy or comparison and I’m not there yet… but I’m leagues better at navigating this than I used to be. It was a blessing to my life and my mental health. I continue to try to temper my relationship with social media, which is a challenge as it’s a really helpful tool for artists to share work and find an audience.

So the whole Songs of Invitation for Guitar Duet EP is about an invitation to step away from what our mainstream culture is telling us. “Tappin’ on a Glass Screen” as a song is an encouragement to people and a reminder that in many ways spending time online and on a phone may not be the best way to spend your time. There are lots of meaningless things that we think are meaningful but they are not ultimately not beneficial to us. “It’s all tappin’ on a glass screen after all // It’s not fulfilling your deep longings after all // It’s all temporary fleeting scenes after all // It’s not giving you your meaning after all” It’s a reminder to people that the most important things we do with our lives are online.

Music can be a powerful tool for advocacy and change. Are there any social or political causes that you’re passionate about, and how does your music play a role in promoting these issues?

I became a Christian in 2020 after being an agnostic/deist and then a notional Christian for years. The teachings of Jesus changed my life in a profound way. I used to be very obsessed with politics and social issues — it’s not that I’m not concerned with these anymore, it’s that through the lens of the gospel I realized my thinking around them was misplaced. People are very concerned about being on the “right side” of an issue and tend to pick the side of people that have the same ideological beliefs as opposed to looking at social and political issues with nuance and realize that there are more than just two sides of an issue.

Social and political issues aside, I’m working to advocate for my faith in the work of Jesus by providing fruit in my life. These works aren’t necessarily huge life changing things (though they can be) —they are everyday simple occurrences. They are everyday examples of walking with grace and treating your neighbor as yourself. What that looks like is different for every individual. Sometimes it means giving away something that you don’t want to part with. Sometimes it means making time to talk to someone you otherwise wouldn’t. Sometimes it means inconveniencing yourself. Sometimes it means choosing to be humble when you want to be prideful. Sometimes it means putting others’ needs above your own. Sometimes it means loving or forgiving someone who treats you poorly. Sometimes it means sacrificing for someone in a way that offers no benefit to yourself. Sometimes it means saying no to reacting in anger even when you feel justified to be angry. Sometimes it means giving to those who ask you even when you don’t want to. Sometimes it means telling someone the truth even if it will make them upset. Man these things are hard to live out and I’m not doing this perfectly by any means, but I’m trying to walk in this way of living, not so that I can demonstrate to others how good of a person I am, but because I put my faith in Christ and the work he has done this has freed me to do things knowing that he sees these good works even when no one else does.

There are a lot of misconceptions about Christianity that get conflated to social and political issues and I think that is very sad. My hope is that the art I make will help be a bridge to those who misunderstand what Christianity actually is but are open to considering it. I started a project with my wife Julie called Alaylon with the intention of making art-songs that utilizes text from the Bible and speaks to Christian writing and thought.

The music I’ve been releasing as Andrew Thoreen hasn’t specifically spoken about these things, though the Songs of Invitation for Guitar Duet EP alludes to my spiritual journey. Before I was a Christian one of the things I often wrote about was introspection and reflection related to why people (myself included) were selfish and so self-oriented. The most recent song by the Shaggs that I’ve covered “We Have a Savior” is probably the closest to this of any of the songs I’ve released yet, but I can’t take credit for that because I didn’t write the lyrics or the melody.
The music I make as Andrew Thoreen may not be explicitly spiritual or religious, but since 2020 my faith is at the heart and center of anything I write. There is so much more to say about this, but I will leave it at that.

The music industry has evolved significantly with technology. How do you see artificial intelligence and emerging technologies impacting the creation and distribution of music in the future?

I’m concerned that AI will be manipulated to make larger, more popular musicians more successful and make it more challenging for obscure artists like myself to find an audience. Hopefully it’s the opposite of that, but we’ll have to watch and see what happens with that. I’d love to see a streaming platform emerge where listeners can purchase credits to stream music and have that credit go directly to the artists they listen to and want to support. I don’t see a return to physical mediums being practical for too much longer as a younger generation grows up with digital music so there has to be a change to the digital method of distribution and monetization. There are many people that are unsatisfied with the “streaming model” and want to support independent artists. It seems like a no-brainer, but ultimately listeners at some point will have to pay more for the music they consume – otherwise the big labels and advertisers will continue to dictate how the music industry works.

Many recording artists evolve over time. How do you see your musical journey changing and growing in the next decade?

I’m not sure exactly how to answer this question. I want to get better at producing music myself so I can release things more consistently and often. As soon as I finish covering all twelve of the Shaggs’ songs off of “Philosophy of the World” I’m hoping to release vinyl and may perform their music with a live band at some point. After that I’m not sure. Only God knows.