01 Overcoming Gravity
“I wrote this song in response to a writing challenge with our house painter/friend/musician,” says Joe. “I thought it would be cool to write an EP called the House Painting Chronicles, so we agreed to finish a song each by the time he finished painting the kitchen. Ultimately, I completed the song (he didn’t.) At the time the song was finished, I wasn’t sure what it was about or where the idea came from. Ultimately, it’s about owning your own shit and maturing. I still have little understanding of why I wrote the lyrics at the time I did.”
“To actually overcome gravity you need velocity, so it seemed like an up-tempo song, and it's easier for me to write up-tempo songs on the guitar rather than piano,” enthuses Ken.
02 The Strongest Man
“This song came after ruminating on the future of the relationship I was in at the time (and still am),” Joe recollected. “I met my current fiancée and we started dating. She was recently separated and struggling through a divorce. I respected her deeply and really cared for her and her children’s well-being once I got to know her. She was reticent to jump into a relationship with someone who wasn’t necessarily her type. Her friends asked, ‘how did your type work out the first time?’ This song is my rebuttal to her ‘type-casting.’ By the way, I have lots of tattoos, just not barbed-wire ones.”
03 Measured in Threes
“This song is about my divorce and choosing my kids (three) over my marriage,” says Joe. “Definitely the correct choice, my kids’ love saved me from slipping into depression. I think Ken got it perfect with the piano and the soaring chorus.”
“I heard the melody for the first line in my head before I even started playing... so it was a matter of trying to keep my fingers up with my head,” enthuses Ken.
04 My Odyssey
“It’s been ten years since the end of my marriage. What I realized is that the Odyssey is actually a story about father and son, so I kept that in the back of my mind until I was ready to write the song. I used some direct bits from Homer’s Odyssey,” says Joe.
05 Not Today
This song is inspired by track and field national champion, Gabriele Gruenwald, her battle with and ultimate passing from cancer in 2019.