Tasmanian songwriter Jonathon “JB” Barwick has brought to a close his epic five-part musical journey with the final single “A Ballad of Heartbreak & Despair”.
Released under Fierce Deity, the song draws a conclusion to The Travellers Meditation that began with his debut single “The Path” in early 2019.
JB sat down with HEAVY during the week to discuss the concept series of songs, beginning with what he was going for musically with the songs.
“It evolved over time, he measured. “About two years ago I got some gear to record at home and once I got that freedom every time I would go up the learning curve a new idea would come through. As I was learning how to record, new ideas for the song came so by the end of it… I was always hunting this sound that’s like a big, heavy metal kind of Queen with the big choruses and big dramatic thrash bits so there’s a bit of everything I love in there. Big heavy metal riffs, big catchy hooks, a thrashy section, some softer sections with choirs and strings and things like that… I don’t know really what I was going for but that’s kind of my sound (laughs).
In the full interview JB discusses the length of the song and what dictates length in music, the rest of the singles that make up the collection and how they fit in with the storyline, having Andrew Hudson from Harlott guest on the track, his upcoming massive project next year and more.
