Interview with artist/writer Jason Cruz of Strung Out | By Joshua Maranhas
In addition to creating a new Strung Out album, Songs of Armor and Devotion, released Aug. 9 on Fat Wreck Chords, vocalist Jason Cruz has been busy writing books and making art.
Cruz’ first children’s book, “There are such things as in your dreams,” will be available on Oct. 25. Cruz is celebrating its release with a fine art show at CoproGallery in Santa Monica, California, on the same day, which will include an acoustic performance by Strung Out and a guest artist, legendary Powell-Peralta Bones Brigade skater and fellow awesome father Steve Caballero. In addition to the illustrations from the book, Cruz will have other fine art on display.
The whole event is pulled together by the art collective Punk Rock & Paintbrushes. Caballero is a veteran of their events, having had an art show with them in San Diego in August. Cruz is excited to be exhibiting with the skater and fellow motorcyclist. “I’m stoked to be doing it with Cab,” he says, “He’s an amazing human being. We both care about our kids a lot, and I think we both care about young people [in general]. I think that’s pretty much the core of what we do.”
Cruz explains that “There are such things as in your dreams” originally came to him as a poem and, over two years, grew into a book. “It’s about describing to a kid what dreams are,” he says. “I asked my daughter once what she dreams about when she falls asleep, and she looked at me like, ‘Dreams? What?!’ It was a cool thing. You get to explain to a kid, ‘Ah, dreams…’ I was stuttering trying to explain this to a kid. I wrote this poem, kind of like a song—it’s got a rhythm to it. I did that first. Using that, I drew the illustrations. The book starts out in pencil illustrations. It blossoms as the kids go into the dream world. The colors take over the whole book, and by the middle of the book, it’s jam-packed full of imagery and colors. It crescendos in a way.”
The project has been a DIY affair from its inception. “I’m publishing it myself,” Cruz elaborates. “It will be available at Barnes & Noble, Amazon, [and I’m] trying to get it into schools. Mostly, it’s a cool thing for parents, punk rock parents who are new parents, to read to their kids. Something positive. My daughter thought of the title; she just blurted it out. I thought it was brilliant. I’m stoked on it.”
“There are such things as in your dreams” will be available for preorder soon at jasonalexandercruz.art.
