Highly Suspect's frontman reveals his NYC crib

Brooklyn based trio, Highly Suspect, have me so consumed and intrigued by everything they do. When I first heard their debut album Mister Asylum, I was immediately hooked and thought to myself how refreshing it was to hear a rock band with their style and sound. There's just something very raw and honest about their music and I can't help but think that they are on the verge of either exploding or imploding.

It's the same feeling I get when thinking back to Nirvana's "Nevermind" record. I feel like if frontman, Johnny Stevens, were to die or something, then the music industry and fans around the world would recognize him as a legendary talent that was taken too soon and the endless potential of his band was cut short. We'd analyze every lyric and probably end up making a fascinating documentary about his life/death. I know that's kind of morbid, but Stevens and the band already possess this persona to me.

Just recently, he posted a picture (shown below) on Facebook of his "office" and shared his very personal thoughts regarding the bands upcoming album. He spoke about how he sequenced the songs in the order of what he thinks will "tell the best story" and once the final product finally came together in his head, he referred to that moment as being "surreal" and ranked it up there with "losing his virginity, being nominated for two Grammy's and the first time he took acid". How epic is that?

He went on to say that the band "didn't let fear of failure or success get the better of them" and that they "stayed true to themselves, and delivered their greatest efforts at making true art". Once again, Stevens has me at the edge of my seat, fascinated by his transparency and just ultra anxious to hear what the band has in store for us.

I'm hopeful that they'll deliver on this second album, but a small part of me is also concerned about them roaming too far away from Mister Asylum. Too much analysis during the writing process can sometimes lead to a band changing up their sound, rather than refining it. But, based on Stevens' high praise for the new record, I'm confident it's the latter, and we'll be soaking in the glory by year's end (which is when Stevens promised the record to be released).

Stevens has also said, "Rock and Roll needs some new leaders. Fuck... just music in general does. Our band has spent the past 7 years positioning ourselves to be the ones that take the torch" and I couldn't agree more.

Stay tuned for more updates!

#HighlySuspect