We’re pleased to bring you the premiere of Johnny Conqueroo’s music video for their new single “Brick” (watch it below).
Grant Curless of Johnny Conqueroo commented:
The song was inspired by an actual brick found on the streets of downtown Lexington. Plastered to the face of the brick was a message, ‘BANG. Watch your step, asshole. I’m a rattlesnake. I like to hunt at night. Let’s spill some blood.’
The lyrics tell a story of a man’s downward spiral started by a brick smashing through his window. Eventually he finds himself in jail attempting to use a brick to smash his way out. Maybe the brick is haunted, maybe it’s just bad luck. We wanted the video to also reflect this creepy vibe while still being fun. We built a wall of amplifiers and old TV units as our set. The video was lit with only one red light and a lot of smoke to push the haunted feeling. Hopefully people will feel the same way we did finding the brick initially: a little surprised, a little confused and very intrigued.
About the band:
“BANG. Watch your step, asshole. I’m a rattlesnake. I like to hunt at night. Let’s spill some blood.”
Though these words are never used in a Johnny Conqueroo song, the enigmatic means by which they found their way into the band’s vernacular served as a jolt of inspiration. The band found the words taped onto a brick in the street in their hometown of Lexington, KY, bearing the ostensibly sinister message that seemed oddly in line with their musical aesthetic. Thus, new single “Brick” was born.
Johnny Conqueroo is a band born out of blues tradition. Formed when its members – Grant Curless, Wils Quinn, and Shawn Reynolds – were in their freshman year, their early EPs saw them writing long, grungy blues jams, spiraling in and out of swampy dirges as the band played what they felt, acting on instinct in a fervent rock’n’roll endeavor. However, the band’s forthcoming Haint Blue EP sees the band growing up: maturing and expanding without abandoning their roots. They’re carving a new niche within the Lexington music scene that sets them apart from their peers in a way that girds them for a national breakout. “It’s a new chapter,” says Curless. “The last album was us kind of feeling out different sounds, and this new one is a real cohesive album. It’s a settling-in.”
On “Brick,” the trio doesn’t pull punches. It’s sludgy. It’s bluesy. It tells an edgy story, dark in tenor and penetrating in substance. Think The Stooges’ vigor, The Cramps’ attitude, and King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard’s modern savvy, all packed together in a bluesy package, sweaty and timeworn in the best way.
Upcoming Show:
April 13 – Lexington, KY at Al’s Bar
Connect with the band:
Official Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram
Top photo by Zach Martin
