63. Jonny Kosmo

Illustration by Lani Morrison

A couple years ago, my friend and former bandmate Nehemiah told me about this band he started playing bass for, and thought would be a good match for this show. I loved what I heard- in fact, I started listening to it all the time, but I was hesitant because A: there were only two albums out, and I usually like to do a lot of research in a deep discography before having them on as a guest, and B: I already had a years-old, over-ambitious list of dream guests who, to my pleasant surprise kept accepting my invitations. But here’s the thing- the more I listened to those two albums, Jonny Kosmo (2019) and Pastry (2021), the deeper the discography felt. I got in touch with Jonny and Nehemiah, and then later in June of 2022, we managed to get together while my family was visiting Los Angeles. Turns out the three of us have a bizarre experience in common almost 20 years ago. We also discuss Jonny’s earlier days on the East Coast (when he went by “Jonny Tea”), putting a little sunshine in your ears, double dipping in the sonic fondue, how Nehemiah got involved in the group, how much fun it is to play bass (spoiler: it’s more fun than you think), the intersection of therapy and song crafting, and of course, the ideal burger. As of November 2022, Jonny Kosmo now has a third album: Light Speaks the Quilt. You can get the whole discography at Jonny Kosmo’s Bandcamp page, and you’ll be hearing some stuff from all of his records on today’s show plus a live performance recorded in Olympia WA earlier this year.

All right, let’s hang out on the porch!

Scope out some fun videos by Jonny Kosmo: