Joey Cape Of Lagwaggon A Good Year To Forget

Originally known as the singer, songwriter, and founder of both Lagwagon and BAD Astronaut, Joey Cape has established himself as a recognized solo artist over the past 15 years. His solo ventures have allowed him to stretch the bounds of his musical stylings, highlighting more diverse instrumentation, subdued pace, and experimental elements. The one constant, of course, is his unique ability to craft unforgettable songs. As with pretty much everyone on the planet, 2020 was a challenging year for Joey. At the onset he was going through difficult transitions on multiple fronts. Then the pandemic hits, and Joey finds himself dealing with things he had never experienced before all at once. The result is A Good Year to Forget, a record that encapsulates all the trials and tribulations of the 12 months that inspired it. Written entirely in isolation in a makeshift home recording studio at his mother’s house, Joey Cape was able to create a beautiful, warm record that captures the pure essence of its songs. Hushed and haunted, there’s an almost Nick Drakeian poignancy to these 12 songs, especially on the wistful “The Poetry in Our Mistakes” and the forlorn-yet-somehow-uplifting “Saturday Night Fever.” “Come Home,” a song inspired directly by words his mother had spoken to him on the phone, is a beautifully melancholy, slightly folky tune full of hurt and longing that also manages to be reassuring at the same time. Elsewhere, “Under the Doormat” is a harrowingly beautiful ode to a lost love of the past. “Check Your Ego at the Door” is a ballroom lament steeped in timelessness, while “Fictional” is a scornful take on the false images and lives that proliferate on social media. Despite Joey Cape’s isolation while writing A Good Year to Forget, his fans will hear much more than just a voice, guitar, and bass on this record. Indeed, he ended up playing a plethora of instruments when recording the album, including electric and lap steel guitars, piano, mandolin, and drums. Additional final flourishes were added at fellow Bad Astronaut band member Thom Flowers' studio and Sean MCCUE's Coyote Road Studios. A Good Year to Forget finds the positive in the negatives to become a record of pure triumphant beauty.