Okie band pulls some strings
Jonathan Garrett wanted a bigger sound.
To get it, strings needed to be pulled. Literally. Garrett fronts Johnny Manchild and the Poor Bastards, and the Okie musician recruited several UCO players to help him record at The Music Group in Edmond.
On the new song “Deserve,” you’re hearing the typical Manchild lineup, plus six more members nicknamed “The More Bastards.”
That includes two violins, a viola, a cello, a bass and a flute. On previous recordings, a lot of those parts had to be tracked individually by a single player. Now, it’s a group effort.
You can stream the song at NewsOK.com/blogs/middleof nowhere.
“This was for sure one of the more ambitious recording sessions I’ve experienced, but I plan on doing a lot more,” Garrett told The
Oklahoman. “We plan on bringing the orchestral instruments with us as soon as we can. I’ve wanted to do this ever since I saw Shara Worden with My Brightest Diamond.”
Manchild and Co.’s latest track “Deserve” is about having terrible luck.
“Just a string of bad days and bad timing where everyone seems to be laughing at you and nothing’s going right,” Garrett said. “To the extent that it seems some grand, cosmic force must be personally upset with you. It was written, for the most part, in early 2016. I changed a few lyrics and arranged all the orchestral parts earlier this year.”
The Poor Bastards lineup still includes Ethan Neel (drums), James Thompson (bass), Ben Wood (trumpet) and Jamey Levy (guitar), and the band recently welcomed Danny McGinn to play trumpet.
“This single is the first step in creating our next EP, ‘Insomnia,’ “Garrett said. “We have a ways to go before it’s finished, but we’re all pretty excited about it.”