Some American

Song Of The Day | My Name Is John Michael - The People That Come And Go

So our song of the day today comes to us courtesy of New Orleans’ own My Name Is John Michael (MNIJM henceforth), one of two or three bands from the city that seem posed to set the larger music community ablaze. 

“The People That Come And Go” is kind of like cliff notes for the band’s debut of the same name. Somber lyrics and mellow vocal delivery provide an engaging counterpoint to effervescent melodies played across a variety of instruments, electronics, and found objects. Given that the six members of MNIJM are all veterans of other seasoned touring acts, the tight, practiced vibe that comes across on the whole collection is hardly a surprise and the care that went into crafting these densely layered songs is readily apparent. At the same time, the incredible amount of nuance and subtlety never seems to take away from the sense of joy. If you need a visual summation, imagine what Carl Sagan might have been like on the monkey bars as a kid. How’s that for an abstraction?

I am really looking forward to seeing what the band puts out next, and although a recent postponement is a bit of a downer, I have no doubt it will lead to something pretty extraordinary. 

The People That Come And Go was self released in the spring of 2009.