North Carolina native Jeremy Squires has spent the better part of two decades playing in bands and recording his own style of sparse and rootsy folk music. Since 2013 he has been staying especially productive, releasing a handful of albums and progressing his ability as a songwriter capable of crafting music filled with depth, emotion and haunting imagery. Like most of us, Squires has been in quarantined at his home for the last couple of months. Though it hasn’t been easy for many artists to stay creative during this time, he has made the best of it. In March, Squires released an album of covers featuring interpretations of songs by Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy, Nirvana, Damien Jurado, Jason Molina and Pedro the Lion among others. Then, just over a month later, he followed it up with a full-length LP called Eastern Glow, a collection of quiet and introspective folk songs with sparse, stripped down instrumentation. The raw production and the intimacy of the music make Eastern Glow an album that speaks to our current times, and for Squires the decision to release it “quietly” was partially due to this situation. Recently, we talked with Squires about Eastern Glow, staying productive during quarantine, getting ready to release yet another album later this year, and more.
This new album was released “quietly”. Why did you want to put it out there so low-key?
That’s a great question. With everything that has been going on the past few months and the way it has affected the current state of the music world specifically, it is difficult to make a living without playing shows. I had been working on Eastern Glow off and on for awhile. In between working on other projects and getting things ready to have my album Many Moons released, I thought it would be a good idea to put Eastern Glow out as a bandcamp exclusive so that way money from the album goes directly to funding things I need for the release of Many Moons like PR, physical merch and such.
You just released an album of covers not long ago. What made you want to put out another album so soon?
The Collection of Covers album was something I decided to release because It had been finished for a long time and I was just sitting on it. People seemed to really enjoy the covers album so I chose to release Eastern Glow the way I did to give listeners something new to listen to during quarantine as well as to help fund the release of Many Moons.
Were the songs on this album written recently or did you have them stored away for a while?
Some of the songs on the album were recorded years ago in between my first album and my EP Central Nervous Station. There are also two alternate versions of older songs like “In the Dark,” which features Andrew Joslyn and Passenger String Quartet, and “Carry You,” that were recorded during the “Poem” sessions. Songs like “Morning Star”, “Copper Moon” and “If You Have Ghosts” are newer songs.
Have you been writing music while in quarantine, and has it been a challenge to be productive creatively?
Yes, I have been writing a lot actually. A positive thing that has come out of this is artists have been coming together to support each other in different ways. Since quarantine I’ve collaborated with Cody Ray (Pony Bradshaw) for one of my new songs and William Goldsmith (Sunny Day Real Estate, The Fire Theft, Assertion) for his isolation collaboration project for which I wrote a fully fleshed out song to his drums. That was like a dream come true. I’ve also been uploading videos to socials of myself performing some of the new songs as I’ve been writing them. I have not had an issue with creative productivity.
Lyrically, does this album draw on your own experiences or elsewhere?
I’d say both. With this album there was more story telling and experimenting with descriptive lyricism. Songs like “Carry You” are literal from a personal experience. Others like “Voices, “One Little Spark” or “Luna” are a mixture of metaphor and personal feelings.
Were there any albums that you were listening to going into this one that inspired the sound and songs?
I listen to a lot of different types of music, which sometimes inspires me, but with this album I can’t think of anything specific. I’m always inspired by great songwriters, well-written songs, poems, movies, etc. I think at the time I may have been listening to Gillian Welch, Stevie Nicks, Sharon Van Etten, Sun Kil Moon, Phoebe Bridgers, etc.
You have another album called Many Moons on the way, is this album a companion?
No, it’s definitely not a companion. Many Moons is very different from anything I’ve done previously. Every album I put out is reflective of the way I am feeling at that particular point in time.
As a whole, you have been staying really busy with music as of late. Is there a secret or a method to your productivity?
Nope. I am always writing and creating. Sometimes it’s shit and I scrap it or save it for a rainy day and others it feels like magic and I just go with it.
