When bringing to life his latest album crickets surround, Greg McGarvey enjoyed the fascinating experience of feeling as though he was co-writing with his younger self.
Many of the tracks heard on the Levittown native’s latest release were penned some 20 years ago, when he could usually be found daydreaming in the gardens of Bucks County Community College’s Newtown Campus, on the brink of adulthood but not officially there quite yet.
During the COVID-19 quarantine of 2020, McGarvey used that unexpected time at home to open up his “junk drawer” of more than 100 unrecorded songs. As he combed through them, a common theme emerged: coming of age in Bucks County.
“I had about two albums that were mostly about this. Some of the songs, they had started a long time ago, but I fixed them up and wrote better lyrics for them,” McGarvey told The Times. “It was super interesting because, once enough time goes by, it’s almost as if you’re editing someone else’s songs. It was as if I was co-writing with my younger self, and I found it to be a really fascinating process.”
Through crickets surround, which is jam-packed with local references, listeners are transported to the stomping grounds of McGarvey’s youth, from Tyler State Park, Positively Records and Hong Luck Restaurant to Tyler Hall and Formal Gardens at Bucks County Community College. Approximately half of the album’s tracks include a nod to the latter, where the scenery and sculptures inspired McGarvey more than his studies.
Breathing new life into these songs allowed McGarvey to reflect on what he was thinking and feeling at the time that they were penned. In fact, some of the desires that he expressed while writing in the gardens — like finding an incredible girlfriend and leading an interesting career as a musician — have manifested.
“As I was looking at the lyrics to ‘Strawberry,’ the first song I ever wrote, I realized it’s basically about wanting to meet a beautiful woman who is also an artist, just sort of beautiful inside and out,” he said. “All these years later, I realized that I did. So that was kind of cool. It’s like I’m touching base with my younger self and saying, ‘Don’t worry, we met [wife] Nicky.’ ”
All of crickets surround was recorded and mixed at McGarvey’s home studio, allowing him the freedom to make, as he described it, the “most authentically Greg” album to date. Influenced by The Everly Brothers and Neil Young, both of whom have wide-ranging discographies and live performances, McGarvey’s artistry doesn’t fit into one simple box, as is showcased on the new album.
“Musically, I’ve always had this funny dichotomy where people may see me playing an acoustic gig and then they see me a month later with a band, and they would really be almost freaked out because the energy is so wildly different. Whatever the song requires, I lean into it, whether it’s a really quiet 5-minute meditative piece or it’s this rock song where I’m jumping off of the drum risers,” he said. “That whole blend of different styles and different moods, for me, I need that in anything artistic because I just feel so many emotions during any given day, and I like when art can encompass so many different moods and feelings. All of my favorite acts are totally erratic in that way.”
According to McGarvey, being able to work in solace, without the influence of producers, helped him hone his artistry in a stronger way than what’s heard on 2020’s Count the Colors.
“I was really able to zero in on what my sound is. Certain producers might be like, ‘Maybe you should stay in this lane,’ or, ‘This song has too much weird noise at the end.’ I found that I was really able to lean into doing things specifically the way I wanted to,” he said. “And if nobody ever heard the album, I would be totally happy knowing that there was no compromise.”
Along with the album, McGarvey released a 41-minute-long making-of film, featuring footage from the studio recordings of each track, as well as clips of the various Bucks County places mentioned in the songs. For McGarvey, it was a special moment to see the finished product, a true visual representation of these deeply nostalgic songs.
“The visuals look like what the music feels to me. It’s perfect synergy,” he said. “And it’s a daily part of my life to document things visually, in addition to music, so it was a really natural fit for me. I’m one of those weirdos that really loves a tedious project like that anyway, so I figured I would lean into it and make a visual representation of the album that would be what I would want to see if I was a fan.”
Still, his work with crickets surround isn’t done just yet. McGarvey is currently working on a second, simplified version of the album, this one comprised of acoustic renditions and stories about each track.
For those who listen to crickets surround, there is one main thing, emphasized in “If It Helps You Dream…,” that he hopes they take away from the record: “You can find peace as you’re thinking about things that are falling apart. There’s a bunch of situations that didn’t pan out the way you wanted to, but at the same time, your inner spirit is pushing you forward. And for me, that’s really the spirit of the album.”
Visit gregmcgarvey.net or follow on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and Threads @gregmcgarvey for more information. crickets surround is available on Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube and other digital platforms.
Samantha Bambino can be reached at sbambino@newspapermediagroup.com
