ABOUT
Chance encounters have a habit of making enormous impacts on our lives. Complete strangers can fold themselves into our stories in ways that irrevocably alter the plot. Brooklyn's Sean Cahill, for example, was on the verge of ending his The Next Great American Novelist project before it even got off the ground. Then he met Jason Cummings, and together they made the band's sensational sophomore full-length, Careless Moon. But we'll get there.
"I was out of college with a not-so-useful English degree and the only job I could muster was selling life insurance in Staten Island. On the weekends, if I had the energy for it, I would play at open mics around NYC,” Cahill recalls. “So, I booked a gig at a bar in Red Hook, Brooklyn. But the day of, I almost bailed on the show because I was so disheartened by my living situation, my job, also I was new to the city, so I had no friends to invite. To make it worse my girlfriend didn't even show up that night. So, I laughed it off and played the set anyway, wearing my suit and tie from work. I must have looked like Willy Loman. It was raw and I was vulnerable. I was singing out of desperation. Afterward, this guy approached me and was like, 'Hey, I really like your music. I'm a sound engineer, you should come by my studio,' and gave me his card. "That fan was Justin Helm, an engineer at New York's The Cutting Room.
Cahill later stopped by the studio and met the in-house producer, Jason Cummings. The two quickly hit it off, connecting over a love of Bite Orca, an album by Dirty Projectors. With Helm co-producing and engineering, Cummings would go on to co-produce and play on I'll See You in the Art You Love, Cahill's crowd-funded debut as The Next Great American Novelist. The single from that album, American Queen, was later placed on AMC's hit-television show, The Walking Dead.
It wasn't long before the pair went from friends to creative collaborators. As soon as Art You Love was completed, together they started reapproaching a few dozen bedroom demos Sean had written. Eventually, Cummings expressed a not-so-secret desire to join the band, and Cahill was happy to welcome him to the fold. From that moment, the band's trajectory dramatically changed.
Though Cahill had studied classical guitar in college, his music prior to this time was a means for personal escape and was without ambition. Now with Cummings to play off, however, Cahill was rediscovering the joys that attracted him to writing and performing in the first place. He ultimately quit his job selling insurance and through this new creative partnership he found the ambition he was missing. "When it's a shared experience, it's more meaningful," he says. "When you have someone to chime in and say, 'Let's move this a little bit and let’s add a harmony here,’ your song becomes something more. That's when it starts to get really fun, when the sum becomes more than its parts."
Since then, the pair have applied creative efforts outside the band as well, writing jingles for everything from Swedish Fish, dog medication, toy cars for Mattel and composing songs for Vans and Google. Their punk-rock rendition of "You Are My Sunshine" was featured in a national commercial throughout 2020-2021.
Like an author taking influence from the classics, NGAN found inspiration on their new album from the bands they love. Tracks like album opener "Blackberry" aim for Alabama Shakes riffs, while single "Bad Animation" takes on Nirvana-inspired grunge. Or "Wicked", a track that blends Weezer's nerd rock with Deerhoof's experimentation. Yet for his part, Cahill sees "Ice Moon" as the most defining song of NGAN's new incarnation, its gentle psych haze building towards a mellotron-led storm with an ending refrain borrowed from Rage Against the Machine, "Just a quiet peaceful death."
Careless Moon was released in October 2020 during the heart of the pandemic. It explores a new range of sound with tightly woven harmonies maintained in every chorus and lyrics that are evocative "short stories," that stir minor, beautiful revelations both familiar and peculiar. Drawing on the use of psychedelics in "Gravity's Rainbow," and exploring what it must feel like to be a baby duck in "Baby Duck Song." These catchy tunes are not without their edge, as heard on "Thursday" when Cahill asks, "Is it me you're thinking of, when we are making love?" Ultimately, the sound and lyrical concepts uplift in major tonalities as NGAN finds a way to eschew the dirt and grime of the city for three-part harmonies and a dose of sun-kissed pop.
After a year of hibernation, thanks to COVID 19, The Next Great American Novelist are back and will be playing a belated-album release show for Careless Moon at The Bowery Electric on Thursday June 17th, along with the incredible talents of comedian Dave Hill and Brooklyn's country-duet, Sweetbreads.
-Benjamin Kaye Consequence of Sound
Chance encounters have a habit of making enormous impacts on our lives. Complete strangers can fold themselves into our stories in ways that irrevocably alter the plot. Brooklyn's Sean Cahill, for example, was on the verge of ending his The Next Great American Novelist project before it even got off the ground. Then he met Jason Cummings, and together they made the band's sensational sophomore full-length, Careless Moon. But we'll get there.
"I was out of college with a not-so-useful English degree and the only job I could muster was selling life insurance in Staten Island. On the weekends, if I had the energy for it, I would play at open mics around NYC,” Cahill recalls. “So, I booked a gig at a bar in Red Hook, Brooklyn. But the day of, I almost bailed on the show because I was so disheartened by my living situation, my job, also I was new to the city, so I had no friends to invite. To make it worse my girlfriend didn't even show up that night. So, I laughed it off and played the set anyway, wearing my suit and tie from work. I must have looked like Willy Loman. It was raw and I was vulnerable. I was singing out of desperation. Afterward, this guy approached me and was like, 'Hey, I really like your music. I'm a sound engineer, you should come by my studio,' and gave me his card. "That fan was Justin Helm, an engineer at New York's The Cutting Room.
Cahill later stopped by the studio and met the in-house producer, Jason Cummings. The two quickly hit it off, connecting over a love of Bite Orca, an album by Dirty Projectors. With Helm co-producing and engineering, Cummings would go on to co-produce and play on I'll See You in the Art You Love, Cahill's crowd-funded debut as The Next Great American Novelist. The single from that album, American Queen, was later placed on AMC's hit-television show, The Walking Dead.
It wasn't long before the pair went from friends to creative collaborators. As soon as Art You Love was completed, together they started reapproaching a few dozen bedroom demos Sean had written. Eventually, Cummings expressed a not-so-secret desire to join the band, and Cahill was happy to welcome him to the fold. From that moment, the band's trajectory dramatically changed.
Though Cahill had studied classical guitar in college, his music prior to this time was a means for personal escape and was without ambition. Now with Cummings to play off, however, Cahill was rediscovering the joys that attracted him to writing and performing in the first place. He ultimately quit his job selling insurance and through this new creative partnership he found the ambition he was missing. "When it's a shared experience, it's more meaningful," he says. "When you have someone to chime in and say, 'Let's move this a little bit and let’s add a harmony here,’ your song becomes something more. That's when it starts to get really fun, when the sum becomes more than its parts."
Since then, the pair have applied creative efforts outside the band as well, writing jingles for everything from Swedish Fish, dog medication, toy cars for Mattel and composing songs for Vans and Google. Their punk-rock rendition of "You Are My Sunshine" was featured in a national commercial throughout 2020-2021.
Like an author taking influence from the classics, NGAN found inspiration on their new album from the bands they love. Tracks like album opener "Blackberry" aim for Alabama Shakes riffs, while single "Bad Animation" takes on Nirvana-inspired grunge. Or "Wicked", a track that blends Weezer's nerd rock with Deerhoof's experimentation. Yet for his part, Cahill sees "Ice Moon" as the most defining song of NGAN's new incarnation, its gentle psych haze building towards a mellotron-led storm with an ending refrain borrowed from Rage Against the Machine, "Just a quiet peaceful death."
Careless Moon was released in October 2020 during the heart of the pandemic. It explores a new range of sound with tightly woven harmonies maintained in every chorus and lyrics that are evocative "short stories," that stir minor, beautiful revelations both familiar and peculiar. Drawing on the use of psychedelics in "Gravity's Rainbow," and exploring what it must feel like to be a baby duck in "Baby Duck Song." These catchy tunes are not without their edge, as heard on "Thursday" when Cahill asks, "Is it me you're thinking of, when we are making love?" Ultimately, the sound and lyrical concepts uplift in major tonalities as NGAN finds a way to eschew the dirt and grime of the city for three-part harmonies and a dose of sun-kissed pop.
After a year of hibernation, thanks to COVID 19, The Next Great American Novelist are back and will be playing a belated-album release show for Careless Moon at The Bowery Electric on Thursday June 17th, along with the incredible talents of comedian Dave Hill and Brooklyn's country-duet, Sweetbreads.
-Benjamin Kaye Consequence of Sound
Press
"....The group’s latest record follows six years of energetic psych-rock live shows that built to a new crescendo with the release of Careless Moon in the fall of 2020. On the surface, the album is thoroughly unobtrusive indie fare, like a pop-leaning mix of Band of Horses and whatever record execs wanted Modest Mouse to be after “Float On.” It’s beautifully produced and performed, with instruments entwined together with that floaty wonder that comes from dedication to the studio sessions. While I’m occasionally finding reasons to be bored, I’m surprised at how much I’m enjoying NGAN in this form.
"Bad Animation" takes a first-act break for Cahill to croon solo for a good twenty seconds -- The lead single "Baby Duck Song" has charming touches of The Sea and Cake. “Gravity’s Rainbow” doesn’t tackle the immense complexities of the Pynchon novel, but the chorus is downright infectious. “It’s Been You” brings all the elements together flawlessly for a backyard summer ballad, and “Kubler” is a slow-burning jam that could even be a late-career New Amsterdams song with its saccharine folk-country tones.
It’s hard to find any honest downsides to Careless Moon overall; Cahill and company are clearly strong musicians and perform their brand of rock phenomenally well... Each time you listen, you’re bound to find more moments that make you perk up and praise their vantage point more than expected." -Scene Point Blank
"This New York City band eschews the dirt and grime of the City in exchange for beautiful, richly harmonious folk with a healthy dose of pop. What is easily appreciated here is the juxtaposition of buoyant playing with shockingly dark lyrics, as one hears on “American Queen” (“Here I am with the razor blade/ too good for my body”) and “Clover Color Blooms” (“Love will bring you laughter/then hang you from the rafter”). The songs are delivered with a sense of hopelessness that conveys early adulthood depression with the reality of life through the passionate vocals of Sean Cahill, who channels the best of Elliot Smith on “Mental Highway” and “Blue”, a song in which Cahill laments, “Nobody’s on my side”.
The band has subsequently evolved from the release of Art You Love to become a louder act, as Cahill joined forces with Jason Cummings and Danny Sher, but the delicate beauty of the songs here are deeply moving. The sadness is unavoidable throughout Art You Love, and the record plays like one long break-up, but for anyone who has ever had their heart broken, the songs are a testament to a pain that is all too real and often indefinably penetrating. What I admire most here is that Cahill remains devoted to his suffering; there are no happy endings to these songs nor is there any silver lining-everything he feels hurts and he is boldly exorcising these obsessive thoughts for all to hear. Despite the similarities in tone and topic, the songs never become redundant, and even the six minute “Prosthetic Memories” moves along briskly and poignantly. Closing with the ethereal title track, the record closes with a breathy, solemn statement that reinforces the anguish Cahill feels. His suffering is the world’s gain and I can clearly understand why the Boss of Jersey Beat wanted this one to get some attention." -Richard Quinlan Jersey Beat
“Blackberry” is our very first taste of this new and improved iteration of The Next Great American Novelist, and what a sweet taste it is: Unassuming and pulsing, the track beats with a perseverant indie rock defiance that oozes what one can only describe as “Brooklyn cool.” - Mitch Mosk Atwood Magazine
"Bad Animation" takes a first-act break for Cahill to croon solo for a good twenty seconds -- The lead single "Baby Duck Song" has charming touches of The Sea and Cake. “Gravity’s Rainbow” doesn’t tackle the immense complexities of the Pynchon novel, but the chorus is downright infectious. “It’s Been You” brings all the elements together flawlessly for a backyard summer ballad, and “Kubler” is a slow-burning jam that could even be a late-career New Amsterdams song with its saccharine folk-country tones.
It’s hard to find any honest downsides to Careless Moon overall; Cahill and company are clearly strong musicians and perform their brand of rock phenomenally well... Each time you listen, you’re bound to find more moments that make you perk up and praise their vantage point more than expected." -Scene Point Blank
"This New York City band eschews the dirt and grime of the City in exchange for beautiful, richly harmonious folk with a healthy dose of pop. What is easily appreciated here is the juxtaposition of buoyant playing with shockingly dark lyrics, as one hears on “American Queen” (“Here I am with the razor blade/ too good for my body”) and “Clover Color Blooms” (“Love will bring you laughter/then hang you from the rafter”). The songs are delivered with a sense of hopelessness that conveys early adulthood depression with the reality of life through the passionate vocals of Sean Cahill, who channels the best of Elliot Smith on “Mental Highway” and “Blue”, a song in which Cahill laments, “Nobody’s on my side”.
The band has subsequently evolved from the release of Art You Love to become a louder act, as Cahill joined forces with Jason Cummings and Danny Sher, but the delicate beauty of the songs here are deeply moving. The sadness is unavoidable throughout Art You Love, and the record plays like one long break-up, but for anyone who has ever had their heart broken, the songs are a testament to a pain that is all too real and often indefinably penetrating. What I admire most here is that Cahill remains devoted to his suffering; there are no happy endings to these songs nor is there any silver lining-everything he feels hurts and he is boldly exorcising these obsessive thoughts for all to hear. Despite the similarities in tone and topic, the songs never become redundant, and even the six minute “Prosthetic Memories” moves along briskly and poignantly. Closing with the ethereal title track, the record closes with a breathy, solemn statement that reinforces the anguish Cahill feels. His suffering is the world’s gain and I can clearly understand why the Boss of Jersey Beat wanted this one to get some attention." -Richard Quinlan Jersey Beat
“Blackberry” is our very first taste of this new and improved iteration of The Next Great American Novelist, and what a sweet taste it is: Unassuming and pulsing, the track beats with a perseverant indie rock defiance that oozes what one can only describe as “Brooklyn cool.” - Mitch Mosk Atwood Magazine
"Songwriter Sean Cahill knows the ins and outs of how to keep a song interesting, with a sound that - obviously reminiscent of the complex melodic openness of Elliott Smith - makes the most of dynamic shifts, tension build ups, clever chord changes, tuneful harmonies and catchy melodies to create memorable songs with quality lyrics."
-The Deli Magazine, January 2015
"As hinted at in its regal name, New York's The Next Great American Novelist purveys an impressive literariness on its nerd rock-inflected song, "Wicked." Starting out with drum thuds that pleasantly hearken back to Queen's "We Will Rock You," the guitar-tightened track shows project mastermind and singer/songwriter Sean Cahill as an unabashed romantic. Like Weezer’s Rivers Cuomo on the contemporary classic “Say It Ain’t So,” the warm-voiced Cahill may wear his heart on his sleeve but only because he has so much love to give." -The Deli Magazine, February 2016
More Press and Performances:
Daily Entertainment World
BTR Today Live Session
Imperfect Fifth
Today in Nashville
The Grammy's, Review of Talking Heads Album, Remain in the Light
Spin Mag, Review of Pavement's Album, Wowee Zowee
-The Deli Magazine, January 2015
"As hinted at in its regal name, New York's The Next Great American Novelist purveys an impressive literariness on its nerd rock-inflected song, "Wicked." Starting out with drum thuds that pleasantly hearken back to Queen's "We Will Rock You," the guitar-tightened track shows project mastermind and singer/songwriter Sean Cahill as an unabashed romantic. Like Weezer’s Rivers Cuomo on the contemporary classic “Say It Ain’t So,” the warm-voiced Cahill may wear his heart on his sleeve but only because he has so much love to give." -The Deli Magazine, February 2016
More Press and Performances:
Daily Entertainment World
BTR Today Live Session
Imperfect Fifth
Today in Nashville
The Grammy's, Review of Talking Heads Album, Remain in the Light
Spin Mag, Review of Pavement's Album, Wowee Zowee