The Stan Laurels

On the Trail of the Awesome Rhyme

Interview by Alice Jones-Rodgers.

Never ones to rest on their laurels, Big Stir Records move into 2021 with the signing of Florida-born but Texas-based singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, film composer and visual artist extraordinaire John Lanthrop, a one person musical and visual tour-de-force who is gearing up to take the new year by storm with the release of his fourth album under the name The Stan Laurels.

‘There is No Light Without the Dark’ comes two years after his previous album, ‘Maybe’, the soundtrack to the Phillip Lybrand directed comedy-drama ‘Maybe Shower’. ‘Maybe’ was something of a breakthrough in the power-pop genre, so much so that it found The Stan Laurels being played on radio stations all around the world and being included on a number of “Best of 2018” lists. If the success of ‘Maybe’ is anything to go by, ‘There is No Light Without the Dark’, released on 23rd January, The Stan Laurels’ finest work to date, will almost definitely be greeted with even more praise and exposure.

For a one-man outfit, The Stan Laurels make an awe-inspiringly enormous sound, one that draws influence from right across the musical spectrum, from sixties pop such as The Beatles, The Kinks and The Zombies through to classical musicians such as Claude Debussy via The Flaming Lips and ‘70s stadium and progressive rock monoliths such as Yes. However, despite the fact that the music Lanthrop makes owes much to his vast knowledge of musical history, nothing on offer on ‘There is No Light Without the Dark’ sounds at all familiar. Instead, it is a kaleidoscopic and endlessly enthralling album packed with a myriad of intriguing twists and turns, where the light and dark suggested its title collide beautifully to form the most complete realisation of this truly gifted songwriter’s unique vision so far.

To learn more about what, mere moments into 2021, is already likely to be one of your favourite albums of the year and gain a better understanding of the wonderful world of The Stan Laurels, we recently got in touch with Lanthrop to conduct the following interview.

Firstly, hello John and thank you for agreeing to our interview, it is lovely to speak to you. Could we start by asking how you became interested in music as a listener and how you came to start making music yourself?

Hello and thank you so much for inviting me! I am honoured to be here. Well, music has been a part of my life literally since infancy. My parents were constantly playing music of all kinds. They had a massive vinyl collection, and played records every day until

the wee hours. They have pretty great taste, too. We would sing a lot, and apparently I’m told I could carry a tune decently at a very early age – my mom still has cassette tapes of me singing stuff like Billy Joel’s ‘Movin’ Out’ [‘The Stranger’, 1977] when I was three or so … I guess it was an early form of karaoke. My dad was (and still is) a drummer, so I would always get behind the kit and mess around, or jump on the organ at my grandparents’ place. We also had a mandolin in the house (for some reason) and other random instruments, and I would play anything I could get my hands on. I always thought I was just playing around as a kid – and I was – but it turns out I was also embarking on a lifelong pursuit of playing music!

Why did you choose to work under the name The Stan Laurels?

This is a not-subtle-at-all homage to Stan Laurel, as I am a huge Laurel and Hardy fan. I thought it would be funny to be a “The Somethings” band even though I’m just one dude doing it all, kind of to confuse people (and it does). And to perplex them even more, I made my “The Somethings” the plural of an actual human being. So, yeah, a lot of people don’t seem to get it, but it’s pretty simple: I love Stan Laurel, so I created a band called The Stan Laurels.

On 23rd January, you release your fourth album, ‘There is No Light Without the Dark’ via Big Stir Records. The album is far from “another fine mess”, but could you tell us a bit about its writing and recording process?

Haha, nice reference and thank you! Almost all of my songs start with me playing around on guitar or keyboards and finding a cool chord progression while humming melodies over them. When I hit on something that seems to work, I keep at it until I have something I really like. Then I record it on a portable recorder so I don’t forget it. I have a folder of well over a hundred of these little bits and add to it almost daily, so when it’s time to write a full song or even a whole record, I

can listen to them, figure out what sparks, and start arranging full songs. In 2019 I wanted to follow up my record ‘Maybe,’ but didn’t have time to do a full album (when you do everything yourself, the amount of hours involved is absurd), so I released ‘Lost & Found’ as a single and people seemed to really dig it. In that song, I very purposefully focused on the arrangement to make it quite varied in mood and unpredictable … I like how it turned out, so in 2020 I set out to write a full album of songs in this manner, and ‘There is No Light Without the Dark’ was born!

‘There is No Light Without the Dark’ is your first release for Big Stir Records and you are the label’s first signee for 2021. How did you come to be involved with Big Stir Records and how has the experience been so far?

Indeed, and I couldn’t be happier about that! So Nick Frater, another Big Stir artist, and I were on a Christmas song compilation together: ‘A Kool Kat Kristmas Vol. 3,’ released by Kool Kat Musik in 2019. I liked all the songs, but his ‘Christmas is Cancelled’ was a particular favourite. I think I messaged him out of the blue on Facebook telling him I liked it and he reciprocated, telling me he was listening to my back catalogue and digging it. I then listened to more of his stuff, and it turns out we’re big fans of each other’s music. We’re also into a lot of the same things and hit it off quickly as friends, so we message each other quite frequently. When he was signed to Big Stir, I congratulated him and asked how he liked it. (I’d been noticing Big Stir’s roster and releases being really good stuff.) He raved about Christina and Rex from Big Stir, and offered to “introduce” me to them, which he did via messaging. Come to find out Rex and Christina were already aware of my music and enjoying it - who knew? We started chatting and the rest is history. It’s just beginning, but it has been super fun so far and Christina and Rex are every bit as cool and supportive as Nick said they were!

In 2020, you made a guest appearance on fellow Big Stir artist Nick Frater’s album ‘Fast & Loose’. Could you tell us a bit about your contribution to ‘Fast & Loose’ and aside from Nick, which other artists on the Big Stir roster do you have admiration for?

Nick told me about the album he was writing (shout out to ‘Fast & Loose’!) and asked if I’d play drums on the instrumental opening track. He was doing a sort of funky Zappa-like early ‘70s thing with cool guitars and organs and wanted a strong Led Zeppelin-ish beat. He knows my favourite drummer and biggest influence is of course the great John Bonham, so my style seemed to fit the song. We discussed the beat, swapping ideas, and then I went to town and sent it to him – it all came about pretty fast. As for other Big Stir artists, honestly, everything I have heard on the label has been outstanding, but some of my particular favourites are In Deed, Spygenius, The Corner Laughers, Simmons, Dolph Chaney, Irene Peña, and of course, The Armoires. But to be fair, there are many Big Stir bands I haven’t yet had a chance to listen to!

The Stan Laurels’ back catalogue is equally as impressive as ‘There is No Light Without the Dark’, with your last two albums, 2018’s ‘Maybe’ and 2013’s ‘Billi & Theodore: Music from the Motion Picture’ both being movie soundtracks. For those unaware of the movies that these soundtracks accompany, could you tell us about them and how you came to provide their music?

Thank you, I appreciate that! As for the how, NETWORKING! I met writer / director Ronald Short at a sort of “office party” held at a club, as our wives were working together at the time. We all became friends and I gave him a copy of my debut album, ‘Death of the Sun’ [2009], which I had just released. He liked it and asked if I would compose the score and a few original songs for his upcoming film, ‘Billi & Theodore.’ The writing, performing, and producing of ‘Death of

of the Sun’ was such an immense undertaking for me, as so much of it I was teaching myself and doing for the first time. But after having that release under my belt, I felt at least somewhat confident that I could maybe write a film score … I mean, a lot of my music has cinematic components as it is. That said, I was also completely insecure and thought – to use a mixed metaphor - the whole house of cards could crash and burn at any time! But it turned out to be a great decision for both of us, as we are both quite happy with the film and the music! A few years later, this led to Phillip Lybrand – who was the editor on ‘Billi & Theodore’ - asking me to do the score and songs for his film ‘Maybe Shower.’ We discussed many different music styles, but ultimately decided on doing a soundtrack comprised almost solely of original rock songs. This made me happy because I was able to do a full power-pop album that would work well for the movie but also be just as listenable detached from the film. ‘Billi & Theodore’ is a very cool comedy / drama about best friends reuniting after a long hiatus, in the buddy / road trip genre. ‘Maybe Shower’ is a great comedy / drama in the ‘Dazed and Confused’ [1993] vein about three friends who are all young and single and all find out at the same time that they might be pregnant; hilarity (and terror for some) ensues. I highly recommend everyone check these out!

How did you find the experience of film scoring in comparison to just making a so to speak ‘normal’ album?

Scoring is a very different experience; you literally have to watch the film while composing to ensure you not only get the mood right, but also the timing of everything needs to be perfect. And it’s a balancing act between capturing the feel and helping to create it, as music adds so much to a scene. Even writing original songs for film can be tricky, as sometimes it also needs to be tailored to scenes, timing-wise, and the lyrics (usually) need to fit the scene and movie. It’s cool because you’re sort of like a train

on a track – you just have to stay on that rail. Whereas when writing an album not connected to a film, there is no rail. You can go all over the place (and I usually do!) It’s great to have that freedom, but I also like writing music that serves a greater purpose than “just” releasing an album for the sake of having music out there. And I’m a huge fan of movies, so any time I get the chance to work in the industry, I am happy to do it.

The Stan Laurels is very much a one-man outfit, with you being responsible for the songs, the vocals and all the instruments. However, we were struck by the sheer enormity of the sound on ‘There is No Light Without the Dark’. We can imagine this might be a long list, but what instruments do you actually play and as we move into 2021 and there is more promise of live music getting back up and running, have you thought about how you will recreate the sound we hear on the record in a live setting?

That’s a wonderful compliment, thank you! Well, the list is not as long as you might think; it’s just the basics, really: guitar, of course (acoustic and electric), bass, drums, all kinds of keyboards, and I dabble a bit in banjo – which I bought and started learning for the ‘Billi & Theodore’ soundtrack. But I definitely do like to have lots of layers in the music, so you will often hear a ton of different guitar and keyboard tracks together overlapping one another, adding to the “largeness” of the sound. The live show is unfortunately a tough premise, for many reasons; one, of course, being that we don’t know when (if?) everything will become “normal” again. I had a live band several years back and we played a few shows, but all of us have such busy lives and so many things going on that it’s quite difficult to coordinate schedules for practices and shows. But I don’t want to be a Debbie Downer so I wouldn’t rule it out completely, but I would say if I do play live, it will probably just be for special one-off events. Or perhaps stripped-down acoustic shows …

We can hear a lot of potential influences on the sound your music, from The Beatles to Debussy via The Breeders, The Kinks, The Zombies and The Flaming Lips and there even appears to be a bit of a ‘70s stadium rock and progressive rock influence in there somewhere, but for those new listeners who might be about to discover your music when ‘There is a Light Without the Dark’ is released on 23rd January, how would you describe the music you make and who would you cite as your key musical influences?

This is the ultimate question, isn’t it?! So, the bands you listed are definitely some of my biggest influences, but The Beatles are unquestionably number one. I know I am not alone or original in any way by saying this, but it’s simply the truth! They are just everything to me musically. You can also add The Beach Boys/Brian Wilson in terms of always making melody the most important focus, but also trying to use sounds not usually found in “traditional” pop or rock music as well interesting, non-standard song structures. I feel fairly confident in saying at this point in my musical career, I have created a pretty original sound with The Stan Laurels … it’s hard to pin it down and hard to say it sounds like this or that. But don’t worry - I’m not dodging the question! Describing it is a tall order, as it’s so varied; one could simplify it by saying it’s (usually) guitar-based indie or alt rock, but there are countless bands one could say that about. What sets me at least a little bit apart, I hope, is I try to throw out the bits that are “meh” and just keep the good stuff. I think I trim the fat pretty well. It’s all about being harmonious and melodic first and foremost, and I do that with all kinds of different moods and sounds. And especially lately, I also try to make songs not too repetitive, add twists and turns, and go places the listener does not expect to go. In terms of comparisons, it’s fair to say if you’re someone who loves The Beatles, The Breeders, Badfinger, The Flaming Lips (especially ‘The Soft Bulletin’ [1999] through ‘At War [with the Mystics’] era

[2006], The Cars, and early Yes (there’s that ‘70s prog-rock influence), you will hopefully dig The Stan Laurels. And I realize there may very well be only like four people out there who REALLY LOVE all those bands … and I’m one of them!

We were also struck by the level of songwriting craftsmanship on the album. We are told that opening track and recent single ‘Florida Man’ is partially autobiographical. Could you tell us the story behind this song and as a songwriter, what do you feel makes a great song?

Wow, thank you! I am from Florida, which in America is often the butt of the joke and Floridians are known for being just super weird and utterly ridiculous … like, ‘Tiger King’ levels of absurdity. And for good reason. The stereotype is pretty spot-on. The song is about the fact that I sometimes still do stupid things in my life, despite being well over 20 years removed from living in Florida. Basically, you can take the man out of Florida, but you can’t necessarily take Florida out of the man. In the song, I sort of blame the dumb and immature things I did in my late teens and early 20s on Florida, singing, “like the old PSA, I learned it by watching you,” a reference to an old anti-drug commercial that became famous in a humorous way. What makes a great song to me is the magical combination of pleasant melodies over cool chord progressions/notes/riffs. It could be something quite complicated (like ‘South Side of the Sky’ [‘Fragile’, 1971], to bring up Yes again) or simple (like ‘My Little Corner of the World’ [‘I Can Hear the Heart Beating as One’, 1997] by Yo La Tengo). It could have heavy, rocking guitars (like ‘I Want You to Want Me’ [‘In Color’, 1977] by Cheap Trick) or be completely mellow with no distortion (like ‘Hackensack’ [‘Welcome Interstate Managers’, 2003] by Fountains of Wayne). The thing all of these songs have in common is strong melodic drive and that sort of magic that creates goose bumps when you hear it (or sometimes even when you just think of it). And that’s what makes a great song to me, which is

something I at least try to do in all of my work.

Finally, aside from the release of ‘There is No Light Without the Dark’, what else can we expect from during 2021?

Well, I’m always working on making more music! Can’t say when the NEXT one will be released, as this one isn’t even out yet, but you can count on me to be always creating something! I also do pop art, so there will be a ton more of that on the way in 2021. Gotta keep creating! I know no other way to be.

Thank you for a wonderful interview. We wish you all the best for 2021 and for the future.

And thank you so much for having me, Alice and Scott. This has been fun and I am honoured to be included in Eighth Day Magazine!

‘There is No Light Without the Dark’ is released on 23rd January through Big Stir Records.

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