At last all three albums from J Neo Marvin and The Content Providers are available for download in our store!
J Neo Marvin and The Content Providers produced three great records following the dark days after J Neo Marvin’s 18 year long partner Maati Stojanovich passed away in her sleep on May 5, 1996. The albums constitute a trilogy: 1) self, 2) other people, and 3) the world.
The songs remind us of how precious love and commitment to one’s own life traverses the meaningful changes inherent in the life and death cycle. If you are grieving, studying for a grieving role in theater, or doing scholastic studies on life and death and meaning making that heals, you will want to add these to your collection. You might just want to be reminded of how precious life is.
Either way, the music and the lyrics in all three albums, and the lovely heartfelt vocal and instrumental contributions of the 38 artists who joined in to support J Neo Marvin during his healing process, will penetrate your heart and soul.
In 2002, at a poetry reading/open mic at San Francisco’s legendary Hotel Utah Saloon, J Neo Marvin met his future wife and collaborator Davis Jones, who partnered to build Ear Candle Productions and contributes keys, percussion, and vocals on What Is Truth and Freedom Fried. The two melded creative spirits continue their partnership as the Granite Countertops and as the core couple of the Experimental Bunnies.
These three great albums are now available at Bandcamp, at reasonable prices for download. If you are interested in a physical CD, please shoot us an email and we will let you know about shipping fees and delivery dates. The CDs have beautiful artwork, and all of the lyrics in the inside sleeve.
J Neo Marvin and The Content Providers Albums
SLOWLY I TURNED
J Neo Marvin resurfaced in 2001 with his first set of new songs since the breakup of his old band X-tal and the sudden death of his longtime companion Maati Stojanovich. Aided by a small group of family and friends, including Rico Bell of the Mekons, Carrie Bradley of Ed’s Redeeming Qualities, and Alan Korn of the Cat Heads, SLOWLY I TURNED is an intense yet melodic set of chamber-punk missives, filled with grief, desperation, dark humor, and hope.
Jangly guitars + warm folk instruments + bursts of noisy feedback + hushed, intimate acoustic ballads + bubbling hand percussion + rough garage band workouts + emotionally naked vocals + wry, truth-telling lyrics. Call it “indie rock” if you must.
WHAT IS TRUTH?
WHAT IS TRUTH? takes its inspiration from psychedelic classics like Their Satanic Majesties Request and Magical Mystery Tour, resulting in an anything-goes approach that stretches the music in whatever direction each song calls for, from the Dylan-goes-to-New-Zealand folk-rock of “Primate House (1731 11th Ave)”, to the darkly sad chamber-punk of “Ex-Supernova” or “Stick Figure”, to the thumping “Mark E. Smith in Turkey backed by a jazz combo and a Rasta drum circle” ambiance on “Fiscal Year Zero (Charge Of The Lite Brigade)”, the catchy Celtic Mariachi drone of “Formerly Boomtown”, and the full-on joyful noise of “Kite Song”. 28 musicians and singers from all over the musical map contribute to the resulting sonic crazy quilt. Recorded exactingly yet spontaneously in good old-fashioned lysergic 16-track analog by the incomparable Wally Sound, WHAT IS TRUTH? will astonish you with its musical twists and sharp songwriting.
Psychedelic indie folk-rock with compassionately confrontational lyrics. The bracing, satisfying sensation of biting into a raw clove of garlic. Like Lou Reed fronting the Incredible String Band and covering Mekons songs.
FREEDOM FRIED
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