John McGrail
Have you had your toes curled lately by any angel voiced, guitar strummin singer/songwriters? John McGrail’s “Stained Bliss” is some good for your soul music. His voice overall is smooth and pure and on track “Fallen Angel” it shines. What we like is his emotive ability and his vocal turn of phrase. John’s cadence on songs like “All Stays the Same” entertains in an introspective manner. His music is the perfect backdrop to your thoughts. His voice is so soothing, his songs never intrude upon your listening experience but rather they caress your thoughts and help you figure out just what the hell it is you’re thinking. “One by One” has a pure but quiet rock edge. McGrail’s voice, songwriting and pacing are something straight out of dream.
UTM: What drives you artistically?
McGrail: The need to create. The need to say something. The need to communicate. It’s not really like I have a choice. I can’t imagine not creating. I think creating is one of the most important things a person can do, at least in terms of keeping yourself sane and happy. It doesn’t necessarily have to be in music or the arts. To be a kick ass scientists takes a lot of creativity. Physics is and amazingly creative thing. Especially when you start trying to comprehend the line between the physical world and whatever is beyond that. (Earth to John Earth to John come in John). But I digress. Sometimes it is just a feeling you need to get out, sometimes you have a political view that can be expressed musically, a social issue or commentary on society in general. Sometimes it is just a look at existence itself either from a religious or non-religious point. I’ve had some people ask me about “To His Knees” and wonder if its autobiographical and I have to say it isn’t. I don’t look at the song as religious as much as what people do when feeling utterly helpless and desperate. Sometimes I create just because I’m just really pissed off or depressed. Sometimes that feeling will be the catalyst for a song,
Of course once you do the creating then you want to try and get people to hear it. That’s also part of what drives me. Although it’s the less pleasant part.
UTM: How personal is your songwriting? Can we get an accurate view of you through your lyrics?
Mcgrail: Only partially. My music probably takes a little darker outlook than I do on a day to day basis. I actually feel pretty happy most of the time but the world doesn’t always cooperate and one ends up seeing and hearing things that leave a bad taste in one’s mouth. That is actually where I got the title “Stained Bliss” from. Life is good but it ain’t perfect. For some reason the darker side of things gets me to write more than the happier side of life. On the other hand some of my songs are very personal. “You” for instance was written about my mom. Other songs are more about observations I’ve had. “Aryan Nation Man” was based on a conversation I’d overheard in a coffee shop. A man and a women were talking and it seemed someone they had known for years had married a very racist man and the man was finding it hard to believe that this person he’d know for so long could actually marry this racist man. So it’s a combination of both personal and observational. I tend to wander into the social/political realm periodically so in those cases it’s a pretty accurate view of me the listener is getting , at least on those issues.
UTM: What is the most valuable lesson you've learned so far regarding
your career?
Mcgrail: Probably to make sure you are enjoying what you are doing. Don’t get so hung up on ‘making it’ that only turning into the next U2 or whoever will satisfy you. Enjoy the here and now because you don’t know what may lay ahead. There was a point about a year ago where for the first time in my life I broached the topic of quitting music with myself. I had never ever considered that but the thought kept going through my mind. I kept questioning whether it was worth the effort and cost of doing it all. Was the reward worth the effort, that sort of thing. But as it turned out I realized that making music live and in the studio is something I have to do to be happy and who doesn’t want to be happy. In a way wrestling with that idea has made things a lot more fun because I worry less and less about ‘success’ than I used to. My main goal now is to make the music and do my best to get as many folks to hear it. That’s all I can do. If I reach the masses great if I don’t well, so be it.
UTM: Where did you get those magical pipes?
Mcgrail: I’m not sure I would use the term magical (although don’t let that stop you, I like a compliment as well as the next guy!). I never really liked my voice all that much. It’s just was what I was born with. I never felt it was all that unique. Some people you hear them and you know it’s them. I’ve always gotten the impression that others like my voice better than myself. Which is better than the reverse I suppose. Actually “Stained Bliss” is the first album I’ve done where I felt the vocals were more than just a vehicle to get the words out. The acapella tune “I’ll Not Be Fulfilled” is something I previously never would have attempted, so in that sense I’m getting more comfortable as a singer. I do like to sing. If others like my voice that’s great. It’s all I’ve got. I can’t say I have ever considered having someone else do vocals to my lyrics. In that sense I do like my voice. I think it fits my lyrics. I think the songwriter has the best insight into how a lyric should be presented. Although then there are folks like Sinatra who could arguably present a lyric better that the writer, but they are rare individuals I think.
UTM: Explain to me the concept of this album and how some of the
songs came to be?
It wasn’t so much that I had a preconceived concept for an album. I knew I wanted to put an album out. My last one (“Songs For Troubled Times”) had been in 2004. I have my studio here in my house so I am always recording and always have stuff in the oven so to speak. When I have free time one will usually find me in the studio working on something. So I had songs piling up and there were certain tunes that I knew when I wrote them they would be on the next album like “Fallen Angel” and “All Our Fallen Tears”, “ Don’t Make Me Stay” and “All Stays the Same”. These 4 songs were probably the starting point. Until I had versions of those that I was happy with I wouldn’t put anything out. Those were the only songs that I knew were going to be on the next CD. “Don’t Make Me Stay” in particular which is a song about my uncle ( who was a Jesuit priest) the last time I saw him before he passed. He was a very cool guy. One of the finest people I’ve ever known.
The rest of the album was kind of filled up with other songs that were ready. When songs were finished and I liked the takes and the arrangements they would be put into consideration for the album. Eventually I had it narrowed down to the songs you see on the album. The order was a little more conceptual. The series of songs from “I’ll Not Be Fulfilled” through “90 Year Old Man” seemed to have themes of religion and aging running through them in some way so that seemed like a good clustering of songs. I also wanted to use some ambient sounds to try and tie things together. This is something I’ve always had a lot of interest. Going out and just recording sounds and then if I can apply them to an album or song all the better. In this case I used some rain recordings and sounds I recorded at the Ottawa Wildlife Refuge (it’s about wetland area east of Toledo on the shores of Lake Erie)
Other songs were chosen for varying reason. Some I just like such as “One By One” others had a certain character to them like “Cold Today” that struck me as being a good blend with what was there. “Anger” was written right around the time there had been a school shooting here in Cleveland at Success Tech High School by a student. He showed up at school and started shooting. Same type of thing as Columbine. It got me thinking of why people do this. Why on one day the person might have just gotten up and gone to school but on that day he went in armed with ill intent. So that was fairly fresh and while I get some curious looks when I play it live I still liked it and thought it was right to be included. “Sons of Abraham” got on just on the strength of the take. I had a version with just vocal and guitar I’d gotten in one take. I presented it to my friend Chris Solt to do the drums on it and he nailed it pretty much in one take. When it goes that smooth the song is telling you to use it. Plus I like the message. In these times the madness that is the middle east is mind boggling. Not all conflicts have a good guy and a bad guy. Somehow at sometime in that situation someone is going to have to say enough of the madness. Sadly I don’t see that any time soon.
As I mentioned earlier the album's title came from the idea that life is good but it has stains on it. It’s not perfect by any means and I think that theme gets echoed in some of the songs. More the stain than the bliss I suppose. Even though there is a lot of stains in life I don’t want to forget the good stuff.
UTM: What are you working on currently?
Currently I am working on a couple side projects. One is by The Headwhiz Consort Moderne Internationale*.(http://www.myspace.com/theheadwhizconsortmoderneinternationale ) This is a more experimental group. Predominantly instrumental although there is some spoken word and a little conventional singing. I describe it as sort of a experimental/world/jazz just to let folks get in the ballpark.
I’m also performing live with a group called Vital Mines (http://www.myspace.com/wearevitalmines )This is a band who was led by my good friend Dan McCafferty who died from cancer on Christmas Day 2008. They were just putting the finishing touches on their album Angels’ Share when Dan passed. So they asked me to step in and take over the guitar and vocals that Dan had done to do some tribute shows and once we’d done those they asked if I would continue on so I have. It’s a great group and it’s fun working with them. Dan was truly one of the finest songwriters I’ve personally known. Great lyricist. I usually do a few of Dan’s songs when I play solo too just to keep his music out there.
*it should be noted that there are those who doubt the corporeal existence of the Consort’s members.
