The last time we heard from multi-instrumentalist Joshua David Thayer was late in 2025 and the release of sophomore LP, and instant “basement-fi” classic, So Little, Close To Nothing but barely six months out and JDT is back with a collection of new music that’s not necessarily a go-between before a new LP but a hefty concept EP (Written, performed and recorded by Thayer) that may or may not be in response to today’s political climate and a certain wannabe tyrant-in-chief.
YMMV when it comes to Thayer’s Warmonger, and the beauty of music is that it’s certainly open to interpretation, but upon reading the description on the Bandcamp page we kept coming back to the same culprit. And that works for us!
Anyway! The music!
The title track oozes out of your chosen listening devices with a subtle bombast led by a strategic march of fuzzed out Rawk and glorious grooves that’s like a cross between classic Dinosaur Jr and Jonathan Richman circa There’s Something About Mary with Tombstone In Their Eyes also in the sonic sludge. Those grooves carry on into the next track, “That’s The Way I Roll”, which lays it on thick with an ever-present laid back Bluesy vibe while Thayer delicately delivers some words from the POV of his main character (“No one will say/I’m the villain/To my face”). “Stay Small” rounds out this fresh batch of tracks with a cheery stomp and sing-a-long about having no control written in the style of a ’50’s/’60’s-style Pop anthem that’d sound right at home on any of the earlier releases of either The Beatles, The Monkees or The Kinks.
Warmonger is out now through Brave Tiger Records and can be yours to have and to hold (Well, maybe not hold cuz digital) by heading here or to the stream below. For more from Joshua David Thayer, head to the information superhighway and corresponding socials found by clicking here or here.