Jeremy Zucker Unveils CRUSHER

The 12-track album features his latest single, “Therapist” (co-written and co-produced with Ethan Gruska[Phoebe Bridgers, Fiona Apple]), alongside his summertime anthems, “18” and “HONEST,” and heartfelt ballad, “Cry with you.”

On the album, Jeremy says, “‘CRUSHER’ is my response. I take back everything I said. It’s no longer about us, or me. It’s about you. During the writing process of this album, I became more myself than ever. It’s a more raw and confident me. I found new influences sonically, and I finally learned how to have fun making music again.

office sat down with the musician to talk about his latest album release, his inspiration, future plans, and more.

Check out the interview below.

How are you and how's your year been?

I'm good. Year's been okay. I've been working and keeping busy.

Nice, you’re releasing your sophomore album, CRUSHER on October 1st. Could you talk to me about how you conceptualized your vision for the album?

Yeah, I think a lot of it came from a place of, a lot of like reflecting on a prior relationship that in the past I had really sort of romanticized and softened. During the past year I had a lot of time to think and a lot of things came to light and it became an album about almost hating someone. It's very hateful, spiteful, resentful, but not really in a negative way, which is interesting. It's sort of this self-empowerment thing.

Sweet, I love that for you. This album feels very intimate 一 and it sounds like you’ve really tapped into yourself. What did the creative process behind this album look like and what do you want your listeners to feel when they’re listening to it?

So when I finished the album, I came up with the name CRUSHER. It has nothing to do with a romantic crush, It's more, crusher, meaning one who crushes, one who destroys and pulverizes. I was thinking a lot about what a crusher is in my mind and just playing around with the idea. A lot of the industrial aesthetic sort of comes from that and like I was looking up schematics of rock crushers and we went to a rock quarry just to see what the vibe was and , and it was just insane. It's a part of the world that you don't ever focus on 一 like, the rocks that made this building?

But yeah, they were just putting massive pieces of granite in this giant machine that was pulverizing it and then sorting it and spitting out on a conveyor belt into a giant pile of gravel. In my head it was like, okay, this is a machine that's systematically destroying and reorganizing this thing that's supposed to be unbreakable. It sort of became a metaphor in my mind for like somebody that's intentionally and methodically and systematically breaking somebody down and destroying them and fucking with them. So that's a lot of the metaphor of the album. It's like, how do you look at someone that's doing something like that? How do you engage with them? For me, it was less about that and more about how do I feel about this? Like, I resent this person and I feel empowered by my decision to not fuck with any of that.

Amazing. I love all of that. How is your writing process? Do you go to the studio and sit and write, or is it kind of happening as part of your day?

So I pretty much make everything myself and write and produce myself. But this time around, I collaborated with a lot of friends and a lot of the lyrics come from random things that I’ll jot down during the day and with the random guitar parts, I’ll figure out on my own as well. Then I sort of sit down on my computer alone or with a friend or two and just lay down the bass and immediately start writing and riffing. The song is built at the same time as it's being written, so it's being produced as it's being written. I'll usually come up with a draft really quickly and then spend weeks and months sort of dialing in the production. Sometimes I'll bring other people in when I feel like I can't completely do something the way that I want to.

How do you get into the mood to create the vibe that you want to convey to your listeners?

It’s really tapped into how I'm feeling at the moment. I will play an instrument or modify sounds or pull out a synth or find samples or voice memos or recordings that I've taken in the city or wherever. It's really just whatever I gravitate to and whatever makes me feel more of the way that I'm feeling in the moment. It sort of becomes like a landslide in the sense of when I do zero in on that feeling, I'm pulling in more things that are eliciting more of these feelings, sonically. It snowballs until you start feeling it more and then more ideas come up that you put in that then convey that even more. Then you put in something that changes the context of all of those feelings and the way you deliver certain lyrics make you feel a certain way. It becomes this journey of expression in one lane that is that initial feeling that was felt.

Love all of that. The focus track from this album is “Deep end,” what feeling dominates you when you’re listening to this track?

It's the only song that I would consider to be a pandemic inspired song on the album, only because it's sort of the monotony of daily life. Like, not wanting to get outta bed and not wanting to do anything or feeling like you're driving yourself crazy and all the things that you do to sort of cope and feel better. It's framed in this really hopeful and celebratory tone and I’m honestly never doing these things on purpose. It just, it just feels right, that's the only way I can explain it. I end up juxtaposing lyrics with emotions in songs a lot of the time. For example, my song ‘comethru' sounds like the happiest song in the world, but the lyrics are super depressing and somewhat hopeful, but mostly depressing. I think ‘deep end’ is similar, It's literally like I'm going crazy. These little things that I do help me a little bit, but still not feeling great. It's just not my year and it's a really bouncy, sort of a bubbly chorus.

Your “MORE NOISE !!!!” tour is coming up on October 19th! How excited are you to finally return back to performing live? Are you nervous at all?

So excited! It's been a long time since I've actually been able to do a real show and I've only done one full US tour and that was in 2018. It was just the way my schedule worked out, I was ready to do a full world tour in April, a month after most of the US shut down. So I've been set back probably as far as I possibly could have been. So, I'm just super hyped to get back to it, and I've had just as much time to sort of think about where I want to take the live show and really work on it. So it'll just be that much better.

I guess my last question to you would be, what do you have planned for the rest of 2021? What can you tell us about your future projects?

So my album crusher is coming out on October 1st and I'm going on tour in the middle of October. I’m doing a full US run and currently working on a Europe tour, hopefully this spring and Asia and Australia after the summer, hopefully. Then festivals next summer, so we're really thinking very far ahead making up for lost time, but yeah, I'm just gonna plan on just touring and continuing making music and excited for it all.

Music

Jesse Jo Stark Is in a Genre of Her Own

April 19, 2024

In the midst of a total solar eclipse, I got the chance to talk about music and style with Jesse Jo Stark.

As I’m on the phone with her from New York, Stark is on a tour bus with The Veronicas, driving through the Colorado mountains to enjoy some time off in between shows. The Veronicas have just started their Gothic Summer North American Tour, and Stark is opening the show. What’s special about this tour for the lifelong music obsessive is the sense of powerful feminine energy encapsulating the tour. “We just started [tour], but it’s been really lovely. I’m obsessed with the fact that we’re all women — it feels like a very powerful crew. The Veronicas are lovely, the crowds have been so fun, and the venues are beautiful. It’s gonna be a good month.”

Photography Sophia-Liv Maguire
Styling Marc Eram
Interview Angelina Hazzouri
Talent Jesse Jo Stark
Hair Antoine Martinez with PARADIS using Roz Hair
Makeup Sydney Szramowski
Photo Assistants Mia O’Neal, Rashaun Richardson
BTS Ms Josephine
Creative Producer Olivia Roper-Caldbeck

This is Stark’s second time touring since the release of her full-length debut album DOOMED in late 2022, which was very well received and led to Stark’s first sold-out international headlining tour on behalf of the album. Previous to her solo tour, she’s opened for various notable acts, such as Guns N’ Roses and Jane’s Addiction. I asked Stark, who’s been writing and playing music since age 11, what it was like to prepare for her first sold-out headlining tour. Unsurprisingly, before any tour, Stark goes into what she describes as “bootcamp mode” — dancing every day, vocal training, rehearsing with her band, and of course, working on her outfits. “That’s the sort of homework I love,” she says, smiling. (Even though we’re on the phone, I can tell she’s smiling when she talks about the outfit part. I’d smile too if I had her tour closet.)

What’s unique about Stark as a musician is that she has ultimately created her own universe by embracing every aspect of her creative upbringing, her raw talent, her fascinating influences, and her unwavering beliefs in not needing to fit into a certain box when it comes to her art. She creative-directs and styles all her own looks, referencing an ever-evolving list of influences that range from Vegas showgirls to Halloween to old films to her parents in the 90s. “I think when I was younger, I had this rebellion against what I was made from,” she tells me, “but now it’s just my blood. I constantly reflect on my childhood and everything I was taught and everything I saw. My brother and sister and I are constantly pulling influences from our parents from the past. I think, more than ever, I’m heavily influenced by them.”

Stark, the daughter of founders and owners of the self-made American fashion brand Chrome Hearts, and now its creative director and designer, is someone who always knew what she liked, but as she describes it, had to ‘go through the motions’ that come with growing up and knowing one’s identity. Today, her self-efficacy is palpable — and it’s inspiring.

...when I was younger, I had this rebellion against what I was made from, but now it’s just my blood.

When she’s on tour, Stark is growing with herself and with her art — she’s not afraid to take life as it comes and learn through the process. With every show, regardless of whether it was on her DOOMED tour or this tour with The Veronicas, Stark understands the importance of human connection through music. Seeing faces of music lovers like herself, meeting those who have traveled to see her, and visiting familiar and unfamiliar cities has reminded her that she loves being on the road. “The growth that happens on tour is so important to me as an artist.” Sometimes we have to leave behind what’s familiar in order to rediscover what’s important, and Stark is a proponent of this growth mindset.

Growth doesn’t just happen on tour with Stark — this evolution of herself happens within genre as well, and for Stark there’s no such thing. Since her first release Driftwood in 2017, the artist’s sound has shifted year after year, but in a harmonious way that still feels central to her gothic Americana roots. When asked if she’ll experiment with genre in the future, Stark confidently answers, “I think I’ve only experimented with genre. I don’t think anyone knows what genre I am.” (She calls herself a “horrific hillbilly” — a perfect descriptor.) Steadfast in her belief that we as humans can constantly evolve in our work, Stark thinks it’s antiquated to fit yourself into a certain box and focus on one specific trade in order to succeed. “If you look at us as people, we’re seasoned. We change all the time. I want to experience different things.”

Since Driftwood, a two-song EP rooted in rock and country, Stark has experimented with more robust beats and 808s on DOOMED, and her most recent single “skeleton” features a softer, grungier punk sound. Without fitting into a specific genre, Stark’s music is undoubtedly and wholeheartedly her own, transcending the boundaries of what many artists struggle with when finding their sound. “I don’t think we should have to label ourselves in any way, shape, or form; so I’m not going to. I will continue to make all types of different music.” Fuck yeah.

If you look at us as people, we’re seasoned. We change all the time.

This goes beyond just music — in terms of her personal style, the same mentality applies. We discuss the idea that clothing and dressing is a sort of playground, and personal style comes from within. Stark isn’t about following trends, but rather, she thinks it’s important to tap into different stylistic elements that amplify who we are at our cores. On her DOOMED tour, Stark wore a lot of leather and stuck to a fairly dark color palette. Right now, she’s into more bourgeois satin and lace, experimenting with different textures and wearing things that feel slightly daintier and more delicate. On this current tour with the Veronicas, Stark is making it more of a point to take everything in — absorbing inspiration from every city, writing songs on the road, recording video on a friend’s super 8 camera, styling and wearing new outfits, learning and performing new covers — ultimately growing through the whole experience.

It’s endearing and inspiring how well Stark knows herself. A Los Angeles native, she proudly tells me that the tour finishes on May 5 in her hometown, a show that she’s especially excited for. While we can’t predict what thoughtfully-curated outfit she’ll wear or what songs will be performed, with new music already underway, one thing is clear: Jesse Jo Stark is just getting started.

Music

9lives' Latest Single Continues to Push Sigilkore

April 19, 2024

The versatile artist, producer, and pioneer of the sigilkore genre, 9lives, has recently unveiled his latest single "CANADA" featuring jnhygs. In less than two years since his emergence onto the music scene, 9lives has carved out an impressive niche for himself as a prominent figure within the digitally-driven sigilkore movement. "CANADA" sees him teaming up once again with experimental dance artist jnhygs, following their successful collaboration on "XTAYALIVE".

With aspirations to establish himself within the mainstream arena of experimental music production and artistry, 9lives is blending his distinct dark production style with collaborations with a diverse array of influential artists who trust him to create innovative sonic landscapes. "CANADA" marks his second release of 2024, as 9lives continues to champion the burgeoning sigilkore movement, pushing the boundaries of genre, evolving into a multifaceted artist, and solidifying his status as a rising star with an expanding audience.

Image by Connor Pritchard

Reflecting on their latest project, 9lives shares, “In early 2023 jnhygs found my music and we started chatting through TikTok, releasing our first song together called "XTAYALIVE"." He adds, We’ve been friends since this song had a viral moment, and fans have been heavily requesting for us to work together again all over our videos.” Describing their creative process, he explains, “I sent a bunch of new ideas to jnhygs via Discord and she sent back vocals to “CANADA”, which I then used to create melodic layers and extra percussion to complete the song.

Music

Eclipsed at Vampire Weekend

April 16, 2024

It had been about a week since the goosebump-inducing communal howls at the moon, as it covered the sun through a cloudy Austin, Texas sky, left me needing to take a seat—suspended in awe of the totality of the event and the synergistic break from routine. I overheard someone say, “I mean, it feels like we’re all going to die, but in a way that’s okay, you know?" under the shadow of the eclipse's peak, ceremoniously brought in as the band performed “Jonathan Low,” (in Vampire Weekend's familiar ironic hue) a track they wrote for the third movie in the Twilight series, Eclipse.

It had been five years since the band had released an album. In celebration of their latest album, "Only God Was Above Us," ticket holders wrapped the streets in blocks outside the venue for the band’s first Stateside show in about two years. Event managers searched to replenish the venue’s stock of eclipse glasses, while the band prepped a show reminiscent of 'getting the boys back together again'.

Words and photography by Rianne Akindele

In between newly released songs like “Classical” and “Capricorn”, the boys filled the almost two-hour-long show with old favorites like “Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa”, “Diane Young” and a genre evolved rendition of “Sunflower” as the crowd danced barefoot feeling the Earth’s energy intertwined with their own and the vibrations from the amps on stage. People stole glances at the imminently darkening sky, artists doodled, friends grabbed onto each other to scream the lyrics in each other’s faces, and onlookers from the highest level of the parking garage across the street cheered on in a symphony of nostalgia and anticipation.

Adding to the layers of the celestial afternoon, the band invited to the stage the likes of Thomas Mars from Phoenix, Dave 1 from Chromeo, and guitarist Brian Robert Jones, inducing further levels of indie revival euphoria.

As the show drew to its close, and the zydeco/country-rock “Cocaine Cowboys” medley fiddled through the air, a conversation could be picked up between two sisters in search of their Lyft driver through closed-off streets,

“I wish this happened more often.”
“Eclipses or shows like this?”
“Both.”

It’s moments like these that remind us of our shared humanity and the power of collective experiences; a gathering of souls under the same sky, sharing the joy of music and a wonder of the stars above. Perhaps it’s the rarity that allowed such transcendence, reverence, and gratitude to be felt. Either way, what a beautiful moment in time it was.

Here are a few shots from the Monday afternoon: