Join us as we celebrate Johns 3rd album "Skinned Knees and Make Believe." John will be playing the album in it's entirety and will be talking about the making of it being recorded in the jungle in Costa Rica as well as the techniques being used.

Here's a statement about the album:

I couldn't be more excited to announce my next solo album "Skinned Knees and Make Believe". It was recorded where the jungle meets the sea, near Corcovado National Park in Costa Rica. The album includes 11 songs along with the ambient sounds of the jungle happening during the recording, and utilizes my two handed tapping technique as well as some new techniques that spawned from it over the last few years. The jungle sounds and songs mix perfectly, cultivating a calm and emotionally palpable experience which came out unbelievably beautifully and I am SO EXCITED for you all to hear it.

So why the jungle?

As you know, I love to record albums in inspiring places. I prefer it to the studio environment because I can lean on the vibe to help center myself and play from a calm, clear and honest place. In my absolutely insane life of traveling, teaching and all other stuff related to my career I only had a window of 3 days to do this but the ambience helped me stay grounded right from the very first note.

How did I do it?

With my bass, an irig interface, and a battery powered amp. I didn't know what I was doing. I hit a ton of road blocks from audio issues, the heat draining my energy and rude Macaws cawing too loudly during takes. But my ethos was, at it has always been, to get it done kicking and screaming !! Emily helped me a ton with the set up and helping me listen to make sure the takes were as good as can be. I edited the takes and then sent them to my brilliant engineer buddy Ian Schreier Mixing & Mastering to mix it. He did and unbelievable job making this album one of the most special one's i've been a part of.

I truly believe this is my best solo work yet. It takes a long time for me to put out an album because it needs to be as good as it can be, both for me and for you. The songs need to tell a story and be executed with as much perfection and honesty as I can muster.