Music Q&A with Jonah Matranga of Onelinedrawing
Photo courtesy of Jonah Matranga
Jonah Matranga has done so much in music over the years and has once again delivered another album under Onelinedrawing. Known for his other bands (Far, Gratitude, New End Original), Jonah spent time some time working on his latest album, Tenderwild via Iodine Recordings. The album features guest appearances from many of Jonah''s close friends, such as Zach Lind (Jimmy Eat World), Jeremy Tappero (Soul Asylum), Norman Brannon (Texas Is The Reason), Chris Carrabba (Dashboard Confessional), John Gutenberger (Far), and Jake Snider (Minus The Bear). In this Q&A, Jonah dives in and talks about Tenderwild, who he would like to see in concert, the best advice given to him by a musician, and so much more! You can order Tenderwild HERE.
Congratulations on the upcoming release of Tenderwild! What does the album mean to you?
Mostly, the album is a journey through whatever happened to me over the past several years in our country/world, from decaying democracy to global disease to falling in love to contemplating what's next. It was beyond therapeutic to make it, and I hope it supports anyone who listens in whatever they're going through. I get that anyone could say this about any album, and all I can say is that it hits different right now.
On Tenderwild, you collaborated with a number of guests. Who was the first person you asked to take part on the record? What is it about their work that made you want to have them be a part of the album?
Jeremy Tappero was the first person I thought of when it came to making this album. He's been with me in onelinedrawing, New End, Gratitude, so much. He has a mellow, grounded way about him that complements my more wild energy perfectly. He's also become a really fucking good engineer, with great gear and a great ear, and he can pretty much play everything, which is all priceless to a songwriter creature like me.
You have been in different bands. What’s something you have learned during each project you have done either collectively or individually?
I think the main thing I've learned is that the bigger something gets, the more people involved, the more money involved, the faster the pace... the more difficult it is for me, for whatever reason. It can be incredibly rewarding, and it's made for some of my very favorite stuff, and it's been stressful in ways that making stuff at home alone pretty much never is. I'm not exactly sure why that is, but I think it basically comes down to trust issues and worries about self-worth, and also that I think I just like things more intimate, personal, and conversational.
What is one artist or band that you haven’t seen in concert, that you hope to see someday?
Hmmmm... Beyoncé, Kendrick, and Tame Impala all come to mind.
What's the best piece of advice another musician ever gave you?
Far went on tour with a band called Life of Agony, sometime around ‘97 or ‘98 I think. Their original singer wasn't in the band anymore. I'd always heard they were kinda sensitive, like me. Instead, it was Whitfield Crane from Ugly Kid Joe. I went into the tour thinking that we would be incredibly different people. I suppose we are in some ways, and it still seemed to me that we connected pretty deeply, too. Anyway, as he was ruminating on his rollercoaster life in Rock, he said something about people ending up where they want to, and it stuck. Since then, I've thought more deeply and carefully about the choices I'm making, the reasons for making them, and where they might lead.
We all have our days where it may not be going as well as we’d like. People deal with their worst days in different ways. What helps you get through the bad days?
My self-care game is pretty strong these days. Has been since early in the pandemic, when I watched myself and a lot of other people starting to treat ourselves poorly in the face of all the fear. I wake up in the morning, stretch, meditate, make sure to drink plenty of water, try to move my body and get outside at least a little bit every day, meditate again in the afternoon, more stretching, rinse and repeat. Also, I've been curious about 12-step stuff since high school, and it continues to be a consistently sane and sustainable way to navigate life. I feel as good emotionally and physically as I ever have in this life, and it's become really clear to me lately that if I don't keep up a gentle daily practice I've taken care of myself, my sanity can go away pretty quick, and things will go accordingly. And of course, picking up my guitar and singing softly to myself, whether it's something new or something else in my head, never fails to soothe me.
How do you stay positive?
As above, for me, staying positive sustainably is a pretty simple thing, just gotta show up steadily. Beyond that, I live by the phrase 'be serious enough to have fun' as much as possible. A brilliant guy called Barry Sanders (the writer, not the football player) said that to me in college, and it changed me for good. I tend to think of myself more as an animal than as a human, as I think that a lot of human ideas have been pretty bad ones, especially when it comes to our invented identities and our place in the universe. When I worry less about my place in our wild human marketplace and that definition of happiness, and more about appreciating the mystery of life at all, I find that my baseline mood goes and stays up.
Thank you for taking the time for this Q&A. Any last words or final message for the readers?
Just thanks for caring. I will never take for granted that anything I've made, said, or done leads to this kind of interest and opportunity. It's literally the only way I've stayed afloat in my adult life financially. It's also been my favorite way of interacting with the world. Start with the music and whatever other ideas are in my head. Share it all as best I can, and see who hangs out. So, thanks for hangin’ out, hope you keep supporting me in this adventure. See you somewhere.