WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:01.960 welcome to the deep dive today we're setting 00:00:01.960 --> 00:00:05.519 the gps for south carolina um not just to check 00:00:05.519 --> 00:00:07.700 out the music scene there but really to track 00:00:07.700 --> 00:00:10.859 a fascinating story yeah it's one of those stories 00:00:10.859 --> 00:00:14.000 about like musical self -destruction but also 00:00:14.000 --> 00:00:17.600 radical reinvention pretty compelling stuff exactly 00:00:17.600 --> 00:00:20.640 we're unpacking this well almost violent transformation 00:00:20.640 --> 00:00:23.359 of a group of musicians they had regional success 00:00:23.359 --> 00:00:27.210 you know but then It seems like they found their 00:00:27.210 --> 00:00:29.589 whole identity fundamentally flawed. It's way 00:00:29.589 --> 00:00:31.829 more than just a rebrand, isn't it? It feels 00:00:31.829 --> 00:00:33.829 more like an artistic exorcism, like you said. 00:00:33.929 --> 00:00:36.710 Right. We're tracing the journey of Sequoia Prep 00:00:36.710 --> 00:00:40.229 School, a band that was successful as a folk 00:00:40.229 --> 00:00:43.439 rock act. And then looking at that specific moment, 00:00:43.500 --> 00:00:45.820 that philosophical choice that basically forced 00:00:45.820 --> 00:00:48.280 them to just erase that identity. And then reemerge. 00:00:48.280 --> 00:00:51.000 Right. Spiritually, artistically renewed as this 00:00:51.000 --> 00:00:53.179 other band, S .U .S .T .O., who are now critically 00:00:53.179 --> 00:00:55.159 acclaimed. That's the core mission for us today. 00:00:55.259 --> 00:00:57.840 Yeah. Understanding the why behind this really 00:00:57.840 --> 00:01:00.929 dramatic high stakes shift. And our sources, 00:01:01.009 --> 00:01:03.450 thankfully, give us some pretty precise details. 00:01:03.469 --> 00:01:05.989 We've got info on the musical influences, the 00:01:05.989 --> 00:01:08.750 timelines, and importantly, the really profound, 00:01:08.989 --> 00:01:11.489 dramatic language they use to explain the break 00:01:11.489 --> 00:01:14.329 itself. Which is key. And the link, the through 00:01:14.329 --> 00:01:16.489 line connecting these two completely distinct 00:01:16.489 --> 00:01:19.209 eras is the band leader, Justin Osbourne. He's 00:01:19.209 --> 00:01:21.189 the central figure here. Definitely. He's at 00:01:21.189 --> 00:01:23.409 the heart of this story, which is really defined 00:01:23.409 --> 00:01:27.109 by rejecting the past in favor of finding some 00:01:27.109 --> 00:01:30.379 kind of deeper truth. So we have the data. Basically, 00:01:30.379 --> 00:01:34.379 to map this whole transformation from that geographically 00:01:34.379 --> 00:01:37.659 specific, kind of hard to define folk rock sound 00:01:37.659 --> 00:01:40.739 of SPS back in the early 2000s. Right. To the 00:01:40.739 --> 00:01:43.739 much more focused contemporary indie rock and 00:01:43.739 --> 00:01:46.260 Americana sound that STO has today. And I'd like 00:01:46.260 --> 00:01:47.819 to really get the pivot. We have to start by 00:01:47.819 --> 00:01:49.519 looking at what they were actually leaving behind. 00:01:49.739 --> 00:01:52.040 So let's dive into the foundation, into Sequoia 00:01:52.040 --> 00:01:54.319 Prep School first. Okay, let's unpack this first 00:01:54.319 --> 00:01:56.560 chapter then. Sequoia Prep School, or SPS, they 00:01:56.560 --> 00:02:00.040 got started pretty early, 2003, and based out 00:02:00.040 --> 00:02:02.519 of Atlanta, South Carolina. Alanta, I mean, that's 00:02:02.519 --> 00:02:04.599 a small town, right? It feels pretty far removed 00:02:04.599 --> 00:02:07.500 from the big music industry hubs. What does that 00:02:07.500 --> 00:02:10.900 specific location tell us? Well, that geographical 00:02:10.900 --> 00:02:13.360 base is pretty telling, I think. Alanta isn't 00:02:13.360 --> 00:02:15.360 Charleston. It's definitely not Nashville or 00:02:15.360 --> 00:02:17.840 Austin. Right. Starting there kind of roots them 00:02:17.840 --> 00:02:20.919 firmly in the rural southeast. And that often 00:02:20.919 --> 00:02:23.900 means you develop this local... really organic 00:02:23.900 --> 00:02:26.979 following first, driven by, you know, touring 00:02:26.979 --> 00:02:29.039 the regional circuits, word of mouth. Before 00:02:29.039 --> 00:02:31.979 maybe getting any major industry attention. Exactly. 00:02:32.259 --> 00:02:35.180 It suggests a very grassroots, probably hardworking 00:02:35.180 --> 00:02:37.979 beginning, digging in locally. Okay, so let's 00:02:37.979 --> 00:02:40.240 look at the band's lineup, the roster, because 00:02:40.240 --> 00:02:42.280 right away we hit this little contradiction, 00:02:42.379 --> 00:02:44.719 which maybe speaks to how things get documented 00:02:44.719 --> 00:02:47.439 for early indie bands. Ah, yeah. What is that? 00:02:47.659 --> 00:02:49.800 Well, the source material describes SPS as a 00:02:49.800 --> 00:02:52.580 five -piece band, but then it lists six members. 00:02:52.800 --> 00:02:55.599 Oh, interesting. Justin Osbourne, Harrison Boyd, 00:02:55.620 --> 00:02:58.159 Wes Jones, Jordan Hicks, Joel Ivey, and Johnny 00:02:58.159 --> 00:03:02.139 Matthews. Six names, but described as five pieces. 00:03:02.460 --> 00:03:04.560 What do we make of that little inconsistency? 00:03:04.740 --> 00:03:08.020 Hmm. That's a good point. It does raise questions 00:03:08.020 --> 00:03:10.219 about, you know, clarity in the early days of 00:03:10.219 --> 00:03:12.639 a regional band like that. Yeah. It could suggest 00:03:12.639 --> 00:03:15.599 maybe a fluid lineup. Perhaps one member stepped 00:03:15.599 --> 00:03:17.900 away right when that description was being finalized, 00:03:17.919 --> 00:03:19.439 or maybe they had slightly different lineups 00:03:19.439 --> 00:03:22.080 for live shows versus studio stuff. Could be. 00:03:22.199 --> 00:03:25.460 It's hard to say for sure. But either way, the 00:03:25.460 --> 00:03:27.620 six names confirm it was a substantial group, 00:03:27.699 --> 00:03:30.259 a pretty active unit, and Osbourne is clearly 00:03:30.259 --> 00:03:33.430 the front man. But he's surrounded by these versatile 00:03:33.430 --> 00:03:36.330 musicians. Definitely. And what really defines 00:03:36.330 --> 00:03:38.810 this initial phase, maybe more than the personnel, 00:03:38.990 --> 00:03:41.590 is the sound itself. They got labeled as having 00:03:41.590 --> 00:03:45.599 a unique style, trying to combine folk. rock 00:03:45.599 --> 00:03:48.620 and alternative influences, which the source 00:03:48.620 --> 00:03:50.740 says ultimately led to a sound that was, quote, 00:03:50.840 --> 00:03:53.740 a hard to define genre. And that difficulty in 00:03:53.740 --> 00:03:55.360 pinning them down, that's actually critical, 00:03:55.520 --> 00:03:57.560 I think. How sad. Because when you look at the 00:03:57.560 --> 00:03:59.919 influences they actually cited, you see exactly 00:03:59.919 --> 00:04:03.280 why they were hard to categorize. On one hand, 00:04:03.280 --> 00:04:05.879 they pulled really heavily from that big, polished 00:04:05.879 --> 00:04:10.120 1990s rock sound. Oh, yeah. Matchbox 20, Counting 00:04:10.120 --> 00:04:13.080 Crows, Third Eye Blind. Think about that. Sound 00:04:13.080 --> 00:04:16.079 earnest vocals. Big guitars, kind of polished 00:04:16.079 --> 00:04:19.759 production. That radio -friendly adult alternative 00:04:19.759 --> 00:04:22.899 vibe. Okay, I can hear that. Big sound. But then 00:04:22.899 --> 00:04:25.319 they brought in this totally different force. 00:04:25.660 --> 00:04:29.019 These deep folk roots. And they specifically 00:04:29.019 --> 00:04:32.019 cited Old Crow Medicine Show. Ah, okay. So we're 00:04:32.019 --> 00:04:34.759 talking about that more raw, traditional, sometimes 00:04:34.759 --> 00:04:37.899 rough -around -the -edges Appalachian folk. Sound 00:04:37.899 --> 00:04:40.759 famous for, you know, wagon wheel. Exactly. That's 00:04:40.759 --> 00:04:42.899 the tension that defined SPS. You had the commercial 00:04:42.899 --> 00:04:44.899 polish and that sort of emotional introspection 00:04:44.899 --> 00:04:47.620 of post -grunge alt rock. Yeah. Trying to mesh 00:04:47.620 --> 00:04:51.180 with the raw acoustic authenticity of Americana. 00:04:51.470 --> 00:04:53.410 So that blend meant they didn't sound quite like 00:04:53.410 --> 00:04:56.050 anyone else, right? But maybe it also meant they 00:04:56.050 --> 00:04:58.490 lacked that immediate punch of a pure genre band. 00:04:58.750 --> 00:05:00.629 Like you couldn't instantly say, oh, they're 00:05:00.629 --> 00:05:02.889 that. Precisely. It gave them uniqueness, but 00:05:02.889 --> 00:05:05.230 maybe less clarity for listeners or industry 00:05:05.230 --> 00:05:06.949 folks trying to pigeonhole them. Well, whatever 00:05:06.949 --> 00:05:08.889 they were doing, it definitely clicked with people 00:05:08.889 --> 00:05:11.170 pretty quickly. This hard to define blend, it 00:05:11.170 --> 00:05:13.949 found traction fast, at least in the regional 00:05:13.949 --> 00:05:17.399 scene. It did. In 2005, they were actually declared 00:05:17.399 --> 00:05:20.019 the number one unsigned band in South Carolina. 00:05:20.139 --> 00:05:22.360 Wow. By the online music industry, apparently. 00:05:22.680 --> 00:05:24.839 That's a pretty massive endorsement back then. 00:05:25.240 --> 00:05:27.420 Validates what they were doing. Absolutely significant, 00:05:27.699 --> 00:05:30.240 especially thinking about 2005. That was peak 00:05:30.240 --> 00:05:32.540 MySpace era, right? Pre -major label hype being 00:05:32.540 --> 00:05:35.180 the only way. Totally. And speaking of that era. 00:05:35.800 --> 00:05:37.899 Their success is just completely tied up with 00:05:37.899 --> 00:05:40.680 MySpace. Their commercial highlights, the source 00:05:40.680 --> 00:05:43.199 notes, are directly linked to how powerful that 00:05:43.199 --> 00:05:45.939 platform was for music discovery then. Their 00:05:45.939 --> 00:05:48.920 songs about rain and hurricane. Yeah. They racked 00:05:48.920 --> 00:05:53.160 up over 800 ,000 plays just on MySpace. 800 ,000 00:05:53.160 --> 00:05:56.120 on MySpace. That's incredible for that time. 00:05:56.220 --> 00:05:58.339 That wasn't just local buzz. That was serious 00:05:58.339 --> 00:06:01.329 digital reach. Building a real fan base beyond 00:06:01.329 --> 00:06:04.610 radio or anything. Exactly. And that online momentum, 00:06:04.689 --> 00:06:06.829 it clearly translated into actual sales too. 00:06:06.930 --> 00:06:09.269 Okay. Their most popular release seems to be 00:06:09.269 --> 00:06:12.509 the 2008 album Ghost Town. Reportedly sold over 00:06:12.509 --> 00:06:15.870 20 ,000 copies in the first year. 20 ,000 copies. 00:06:16.350 --> 00:06:19.310 For an unsigned or very indie band back then, 00:06:19.410 --> 00:06:21.910 before streaming really took over sales. That's 00:06:21.910 --> 00:06:24.629 substantial. That's real money. Real artistic 00:06:24.629 --> 00:06:26.779 achievement. Oh yeah. They weren't just some 00:06:26.779 --> 00:06:29.579 local curiosity playing bars. They were a commercially 00:06:29.579 --> 00:06:33.259 viable act. And you can see that dual nature, 00:06:33.420 --> 00:06:36.000 the folk rock blend, reflected perfectly in the 00:06:36.000 --> 00:06:37.680 instruments they were using, too. It wasn't just 00:06:37.680 --> 00:06:40.319 like they added a banjo player occasionally. 00:06:40.699 --> 00:06:42.879 No, the instrumentation details really give you 00:06:42.879 --> 00:06:45.160 the technical fingerprint of their sound. Right. 00:06:45.220 --> 00:06:47.680 Justin Osbourne, he wasn't just the singer. Right. 00:06:47.720 --> 00:06:49.839 He also played acoustic guitar, mandolin, and 00:06:49.839 --> 00:06:52.439 piano. Mandolin. And then Wes Jones handled guitar, 00:06:52.680 --> 00:06:55.459 vocals, banjo, and piano. So the mandolin. the 00:06:55.459 --> 00:06:58.180 banjo. That's the literal folk texture. Yeah, 00:06:58.279 --> 00:07:00.560 layered right onto the standard rock setup. Exactly. 00:07:00.560 --> 00:07:03.040 They had the core rock tools, but they also had 00:07:03.040 --> 00:07:05.379 the texture and that acoustic feel of Americana 00:07:05.379 --> 00:07:08.199 baked right in. It shows the genre blend wasn't 00:07:08.199 --> 00:07:10.240 accidental. It was built into how they played. 00:07:10.399 --> 00:07:13.439 So their active years stretched for, what, nearly 00:07:13.439 --> 00:07:16.300 a decade? From starting in 2003 up to their last 00:07:16.300 --> 00:07:19.220 release mention, a single called Spells in 2011. 00:07:19.600 --> 00:07:22.120 Yeah, a good run. And during that time, they 00:07:22.120 --> 00:07:23.839 were definitely a touring machine. Yeah. Hitting 00:07:23.839 --> 00:07:25.959 the Southeast, obviously, but also the Northeast 00:07:25.959 --> 00:07:28.259 and Midwest. Getting out there. Constantly on 00:07:28.259 --> 00:07:30.480 the road. And look at who they shared stages 00:07:30.480 --> 00:07:32.980 with. It's incredibly diverse. You've got Anne 00:07:32.980 --> 00:07:36.420 Berlin, who are like a major alternative rockamo 00:07:36.420 --> 00:07:39.939 act. They're better than Ezra. Classic 90s rock. 00:07:40.100 --> 00:07:42.769 And then also roots guys like Corey Smith. Wow, 00:07:42.990 --> 00:07:45.889 that is diverse. It really confirms that their 00:07:45.889 --> 00:07:48.250 hard -to -define sound actually worked across 00:07:48.250 --> 00:07:50.329 different audiences. Yeah. It was versatile enough 00:07:50.329 --> 00:07:53.209 to fit on different bills. Truly cross -genre. 00:07:53.290 --> 00:07:55.110 And anchored in places like the New Brooklyn 00:07:55.110 --> 00:07:57.709 Tavern in Columbia, South Carolina, which is 00:07:57.709 --> 00:07:59.350 kind of a legendary venue down there, right? 00:07:59.870 --> 00:08:02.149 Solidifying that regional legacy. Definitely. 00:08:02.209 --> 00:08:04.649 They put in the work, built a real following. 00:08:04.829 --> 00:08:07.310 Okay, so we've got this picture. A successful 00:08:07.310 --> 00:08:10.310 band. Established regionally, selling albums, 00:08:10.509 --> 00:08:13.269 big online numbers, almost a decade of touring 00:08:13.269 --> 00:08:15.689 under their belt. Real momentum. Yep. They'd 00:08:15.689 --> 00:08:18.649 achieved something significant. Then we hit this 00:08:18.649 --> 00:08:21.529 huge narrative turn. And this is where the story 00:08:21.529 --> 00:08:24.089 shifts from, you know, musical success to something 00:08:24.089 --> 00:08:27.529 more like existential crisis. Right. That jump 00:08:27.529 --> 00:08:30.529 from having commercial success to suddenly expressing 00:08:30.529 --> 00:08:33.210 this profound self -doubt. Yeah. That's honestly 00:08:33.210 --> 00:08:35.330 the most intriguing part of this whole deep dive 00:08:35.330 --> 00:08:38.509 for me. Yeah. And it starts simply enough. The 00:08:38.509 --> 00:08:40.850 band took an eight -month break in 2010. Okay. 00:08:41.049 --> 00:08:43.549 Bands take breaks. But this wasn't just a standard, 00:08:43.649 --> 00:08:46.190 let's recharge, write some new songs kind of 00:08:46.190 --> 00:08:48.429 break. The source material is really explicit 00:08:48.429 --> 00:08:51.409 here. How so? This time off was used for deep, 00:08:51.509 --> 00:08:55.029 like, thematic and philosophical self -reflection, 00:08:55.110 --> 00:08:58.070 and apparently driven primarily by Osborne. Okay. 00:08:58.110 --> 00:09:00.230 In the language they used to describe this reflection, 00:09:00.330 --> 00:09:03.159 this is where it gets... It stops being about 00:09:03.159 --> 00:09:05.299 just music and starts sounding almost like, well, 00:09:05.360 --> 00:09:07.919 morality. Yeah. They apparently engaged in looking 00:09:07.919 --> 00:09:10.299 back on what's described as a life of sin. Right. 00:09:10.379 --> 00:09:13.779 A life of sin. Wait, hang on. A successful folk 00:09:13.779 --> 00:09:16.639 rock band touring the Southeast is looking back 00:09:16.639 --> 00:09:18.919 at their run and calling it a life of sin. That's 00:09:18.919 --> 00:09:22.740 an incredibly severe way to frame it. It's extremely 00:09:22.740 --> 00:09:25.200 high stakes language, isn't it? It suggests this 00:09:25.200 --> 00:09:28.220 massive gap had opened up between their public 00:09:28.220 --> 00:09:31.679 success and how the core artists felt. internally 00:09:31.679 --> 00:09:34.419 privately but why why would the music itself 00:09:34.419 --> 00:09:37.879 this polished folk rock blend be considered sinful 00:09:37.879 --> 00:09:40.740 what does that even mean in this context that's 00:09:40.740 --> 00:09:43.860 the million dollar question perhaps and this 00:09:43.860 --> 00:09:45.960 is just speculation based on the ship that followed 00:09:46.500 --> 00:09:49.039 Perhaps that polished, radio -friendly side, 00:09:49.139 --> 00:09:51.779 the 90s rock influence they embodied. Maybe that 00:09:51.779 --> 00:09:54.120 started to feel inauthentic or too commercially 00:09:54.120 --> 00:09:56.600 compromising compared to the raw Americana side 00:09:56.600 --> 00:09:59.320 they also clearly loved. So the art itself, or 00:09:59.320 --> 00:10:00.820 maybe the lifestyle that came with promoting 00:10:00.820 --> 00:10:04.039 that art, became the sin. It seems like it. And 00:10:04.039 --> 00:10:05.779 if the music and the touring life were viewed 00:10:05.779 --> 00:10:08.039 that negatively, then the need for radical change 00:10:08.039 --> 00:10:10.360 becomes much clearer, artistically speaking. 00:10:10.600 --> 00:10:13.039 Yeah, it sets the stage. And this identity crisis, 00:10:13.179 --> 00:10:15.220 it really climaxes with this incredibly dramatic 00:10:15.220 --> 00:10:17.340 statement that the source highlights, that they 00:10:17.340 --> 00:10:19.740 had, quote, entered the darkness and can no longer 00:10:19.740 --> 00:10:22.759 return. That's not just rebranding talk. That 00:10:22.759 --> 00:10:24.759 sounds like a public declaration of some kind 00:10:24.759 --> 00:10:27.639 of foundational trauma or irreversible change. 00:10:27.779 --> 00:10:31.809 That statement. absolutely serves as the explicit, 00:10:32.110 --> 00:10:35.110 super dramatic catalyst for everything that follows. 00:10:35.289 --> 00:10:38.309 It implies that the path they took as Sequoia 00:10:38.309 --> 00:10:40.629 Prep School led them somewhere they ultimately 00:10:40.629 --> 00:10:44.320 found, untenable. Or maybe even morally corrupting 00:10:44.320 --> 00:10:45.960 from their perspective. Like they felt they crossed 00:10:45.960 --> 00:10:47.940 some line. Exactly. They crossed the threshold. 00:10:48.120 --> 00:10:49.840 And the only way forward was to just completely 00:10:49.840 --> 00:10:52.799 abandon the vehicle, the band identity that took 00:10:52.799 --> 00:10:56.059 them there. This level of self -criticism, it 00:10:56.059 --> 00:10:58.799 almost makes the band sound less like a business 00:10:58.799 --> 00:11:00.820 and more like, I don't know, the subject of a 00:11:00.820 --> 00:11:02.899 morality play or something. It really does frame 00:11:02.899 --> 00:11:05.019 it that way. So what was the practical outcome 00:11:05.019 --> 00:11:08.320 of this intense internal conviction? What did 00:11:08.320 --> 00:11:11.320 they actually do? Well, the result was this. 00:11:11.850 --> 00:11:14.789 conscious, very purposeful effort to, quote, 00:11:14.909 --> 00:11:17.250 dissociate themselves with the music produced 00:11:17.250 --> 00:11:19.909 when they were called Sequoia Prep School. Dissociate 00:11:19.909 --> 00:11:22.200 themselves. Think about what that means. It's 00:11:22.200 --> 00:11:24.379 huge. They were actively rejecting their most 00:11:24.379 --> 00:11:26.820 popular songs, their biggest successes, their 00:11:26.820 --> 00:11:29.320 established name and identity. That's a staggering 00:11:29.320 --> 00:11:31.419 business decision, even before you get to the 00:11:31.419 --> 00:11:33.860 philosophical weight of it. You sell 20 ,000 00:11:33.860 --> 00:11:37.000 albums, you have 800 ,000 plays building an audience, 00:11:37.139 --> 00:11:39.580 and you consciously say, nope, we reject all 00:11:39.580 --> 00:11:42.700 that. You risk alienating your entire original 00:11:42.700 --> 00:11:45.240 fan base and giving up potentially significant 00:11:45.240 --> 00:11:48.629 income from that back catalog. Why take such 00:11:48.629 --> 00:11:51.669 a drastic, almost punitive step? It seems because 00:11:51.669 --> 00:11:53.970 the philosophical need, the need for a clean 00:11:53.970 --> 00:11:56.330 break, just completely outweighed the commercial 00:11:56.330 --> 00:11:59.029 risk for them, or at least for Osborne. The darkness 00:11:59.029 --> 00:12:02.190 was too real. Apparently, for them, the name 00:12:02.190 --> 00:12:04.970 SPS and its music were just intrinsically linked 00:12:04.970 --> 00:12:08.110 to that life of sin. So to achieve whatever artistic 00:12:08.110 --> 00:12:10.450 redemption or clarity they were seeking, they 00:12:10.450 --> 00:12:13.090 had to declare that past identity dead. Finished. 00:12:13.190 --> 00:12:15.330 So the dissociation makes the next step. The 00:12:15.330 --> 00:12:18.470 new band, S .U .S .O., seem not just like an 00:12:18.470 --> 00:12:21.450 evolution, but like a necessary rebirth, a cleansing. 00:12:21.690 --> 00:12:24.350 Exactly. It transforms what could have just been 00:12:24.350 --> 00:12:26.909 a name change into this really profound statement 00:12:26.909 --> 00:12:29.490 about the connection between your personal ethics 00:12:29.490 --> 00:12:33.570 and what you create artistically. So emerging 00:12:33.570 --> 00:12:36.409 from that self -declared darkness, this new identity 00:12:36.409 --> 00:12:39.990 starts to form. The band ASIO, often in all caps, 00:12:40.070 --> 00:12:42.429 S -U -S -T -O, began their activities around 00:12:42.429 --> 00:12:44.970 2013, 2014. So a couple of years after that, 00:12:45.009 --> 00:12:47.629 SBS hiatus. Right. And now based in Charleston, 00:12:47.690 --> 00:12:50.190 South Carolina. OK, so we see a time shift, but 00:12:50.190 --> 00:12:52.090 also a geographical one. They move from Atlanta, 00:12:52.330 --> 00:12:55.350 that small town, to Charleston. Charleston's 00:12:55.350 --> 00:12:57.669 a much bigger cultural hub, right? Especially 00:12:57.669 --> 00:12:59.850 for Americana, roots music, that kind of scene. 00:12:59.990 --> 00:13:02.309 Does that move seem strategic, like reflecting 00:13:02.309 --> 00:13:04.509 a new focus? Oh, absolutely. I think so. Yeah. 00:13:04.590 --> 00:13:07.450 The move to Charleston signals a kind of... Professional 00:13:07.450 --> 00:13:09.750 maturation, maybe. How do you mean? Well, they're 00:13:09.750 --> 00:13:11.929 now embedding themselves right in the city with 00:13:11.929 --> 00:13:15.009 a really robust contemporary music scene. A scene 00:13:15.009 --> 00:13:17.529 that's known for being friendly to exactly the 00:13:17.529 --> 00:13:20.029 genres they were moving towards, Americana and 00:13:20.029 --> 00:13:21.870 indie rock. So it helps them shed that maybe 00:13:21.870 --> 00:13:25.110 limiting regional folk rock tag from the Atlanta 00:13:25.110 --> 00:13:27.850 days? Yeah, and enter a broader, maybe more sophisticated 00:13:27.850 --> 00:13:30.450 cultural conversation. It positions them differently. 00:13:30.669 --> 00:13:34.490 And the name itself, S. Ute Stiro. This provides 00:13:34.490 --> 00:13:37.690 that ultimate aha. Moment, doesn't it? I feel 00:13:37.690 --> 00:13:39.549 like it directly justifies all the philosophical 00:13:39.549 --> 00:13:41.690 drama of the break we just talked about. It really 00:13:41.690 --> 00:13:45.750 does. The name S .U .T .O. It's the Spanish word 00:13:45.750 --> 00:13:49.970 meaning an intense fear understood as a condition 00:13:49.970 --> 00:13:52.950 of the soul. Wow. I mean, that perfectly encapsulates 00:13:52.950 --> 00:13:55.389 the whole crisis narrative, right? It's actually 00:13:55.389 --> 00:13:57.330 brilliant branding if you think about it purely 00:13:57.330 --> 00:13:59.610 on that level. Yeah. Because it creates this 00:13:59.610 --> 00:14:03.080 direct thematic link. Back to that identity trauma. 00:14:03.240 --> 00:14:06.559 If they enter the darkness as SPS. Yeah. The 00:14:06.559 --> 00:14:10.120 new band is used to is literally named after 00:14:10.120 --> 00:14:12.440 the condition that crisis created. It's like 00:14:12.440 --> 00:14:14.740 saying, OK, that intense fear, that spiritual 00:14:14.740 --> 00:14:16.960 unease, the susto that's now the central subject 00:14:16.960 --> 00:14:18.799 of our art. We're not going to ignore it or cover 00:14:18.799 --> 00:14:20.539 it up with polished rock anymore. And the source 00:14:20.539 --> 00:14:22.320 adds a little more texture to noting the name 00:14:22.320 --> 00:14:24.559 also had some derivation from Cuban roots and 00:14:24.559 --> 00:14:27.039 even letters within Justin Osbourne's own name. 00:14:27.120 --> 00:14:30.019 Right. Which adds these layers of. personal, 00:14:30.139 --> 00:14:34.059 maybe spiritual cultural significance. It grounds 00:14:34.059 --> 00:14:36.659 the new identity, not just in a big philosophical 00:14:36.659 --> 00:14:39.620 concept, but ties it right back to the band leader's 00:14:39.620 --> 00:14:41.940 own identity and maybe heritage. It makes it 00:14:41.940 --> 00:14:44.580 feel very intentional. Very personal. Yeah. And 00:14:44.580 --> 00:14:47.419 crucially, this new identity came with a much 00:14:47.419 --> 00:14:50.120 clearer sound, a clearer stylistic definition. 00:14:50.440 --> 00:14:53.879 Okay. SCU is defined pretty clearly as an American 00:14:53.879 --> 00:14:57.480 indie rock band, but also incorporating Americana 00:14:57.480 --> 00:15:00.080 and alt country. So that resolves that old SPS 00:15:00.080 --> 00:15:03.179 problem of being hard to define. Exactly. Yeah. 00:15:03.299 --> 00:15:05.740 They seem to have found their lane by taking 00:15:05.740 --> 00:15:08.519 those folk elements they clearly loved the Americana 00:15:08.519 --> 00:15:11.419 part and synthesizing them with a more contemporary 00:15:11.419 --> 00:15:14.200 approach. the indie rock edge. It's a clearer 00:15:14.200 --> 00:15:16.659 target. Now let's talk about continuity, because 00:15:16.659 --> 00:15:18.919 even though this was framed as this huge philosophical 00:15:18.919 --> 00:15:22.039 break, it wasn't a total clean slate with personnel, 00:15:22.220 --> 00:15:24.500 right? Osbourne's still the main guy. Yes, he's 00:15:24.500 --> 00:15:26.259 the central visionary providing that continuity. 00:15:26.519 --> 00:15:28.820 But there was at least one other key member shared 00:15:28.820 --> 00:15:31.059 between the bands, which proves this new thing 00:15:31.059 --> 00:15:33.519 was still built on an existing foundation. Yeah, 00:15:33.559 --> 00:15:36.419 that's an important detail. Jordan Hicks. He 00:15:36.419 --> 00:15:38.639 was listed as a versatile player back in SBS 00:15:38.639 --> 00:15:42.399 guitar, banjo, vocals. Right, the banjo especially. 00:15:42.799 --> 00:15:45.120 And the source explicitly notes he was a past 00:15:45.120 --> 00:15:48.840 member of STO2. Okay, so why is that vital? Because 00:15:48.840 --> 00:15:51.580 Hicks represents that specific technical continuity. 00:15:51.879 --> 00:15:54.740 The banjo, that folk sensibility, it wasn't just 00:15:54.740 --> 00:15:57.000 discarded. It wasn't thrown out with the bathwater. 00:15:57.179 --> 00:15:59.659 Ah, I see. It was just repurposed, given a new 00:15:59.659 --> 00:16:02.799 context within the STO framework. So it wasn't 00:16:02.799 --> 00:16:05.340 really a rejection of the sound entirely maybe, 00:16:05.500 --> 00:16:07.840 but more the meaning or the associations tied 00:16:07.840 --> 00:16:10.879 to that sound back in the SBS days. Gotcha. The 00:16:10.879 --> 00:16:13.539 tools were kept, but the mission changed. Something 00:16:13.539 --> 00:16:16.360 like that. And the current roster seems to solidify 00:16:16.360 --> 00:16:19.980 SDO as a cohesive unit now. Justin Osborne, Marshall 00:16:19.980 --> 00:16:22.500 Hudson, Kevin Early, Johnny Delaware, and Ian 00:16:22.500 --> 00:16:26.360 Kleem. And importantly, this new structure, this 00:16:26.360 --> 00:16:28.799 new identity, it seems to have quickly led to 00:16:28.799 --> 00:16:31.059 much more prolific output and definitely greater 00:16:31.059 --> 00:16:34.039 industry visibility than SPS ever achieved. The 00:16:34.039 --> 00:16:35.980 trajectory is pretty steep, yeah. They put out 00:16:35.980 --> 00:16:38.740 their self -titled debut in 2014 that was on 00:16:38.740 --> 00:16:41.679 Hearts and Plugs, which is a solid local regional 00:16:41.679 --> 00:16:43.980 label in Charleston. Okay. But then look at the 00:16:43.980 --> 00:16:46.340 label progression after that. It really demonstrates 00:16:46.340 --> 00:16:49.080 how quickly they ascended and got validated within 00:16:49.080 --> 00:16:51.639 that American indie world. They moved to Missing 00:16:51.639 --> 00:16:54.100 Peace Records and Acid Boys for their second 00:16:54.100 --> 00:16:57.179 album, And I'm Fine Today, in 2017. And then 00:16:57.179 --> 00:16:59.759 came a really significant step up, one that anyone 00:16:59.759 --> 00:17:01.700 following this kind of music would recognize. 00:17:02.570 --> 00:17:05.069 They signed with Rounder Records for ever since 00:17:05.069 --> 00:17:07.549 I lost my mind in 2019. Yeah. What does signing 00:17:07.549 --> 00:17:10.170 to Rounder specifically signal in this context? 00:17:10.569 --> 00:17:12.609 Americana, alt country, Rounder's a big name, 00:17:12.630 --> 00:17:14.650 right? Oh, Rounder's a huge signifier. It's one 00:17:14.650 --> 00:17:16.950 of those respected, most storied labels in American 00:17:16.950 --> 00:17:19.750 roots music, period. Often associated with Grammy 00:17:19.750 --> 00:17:22.029 winners, genre legends. So that move instantly 00:17:22.029 --> 00:17:24.890 does what? Lifts them up. It instantly validated 00:17:24.890 --> 00:17:28.349 Susto's commitment to authentic Americana and 00:17:28.349 --> 00:17:30.920 alt country. It lifted them from being maybe 00:17:30.920 --> 00:17:34.019 a cool regional indie band to having serious 00:17:34.019 --> 00:17:37.039 national industry credibility. It confirmed they 00:17:37.039 --> 00:17:39.180 weren't that hard to define local rock band anymore. 00:17:39.420 --> 00:17:41.500 They were serious players in the roots genre. 00:17:41.700 --> 00:17:43.880 Okay, huge step. And they kept that momentum 00:17:43.880 --> 00:17:45.799 going, didn't they? Eventually moving to New 00:17:45.799 --> 00:17:48.259 West Records. Yeah, for Time in the Sun in 2021 00:17:48.259 --> 00:17:52.039 and then my entire life in 2023. And New West 00:17:52.039 --> 00:17:54.359 is another powerhouse label in that contemporary 00:17:54.359 --> 00:17:57.660 Americana and roots rock world. Absolutely. So 00:17:57.660 --> 00:18:00.089 it confirms this. really calculated strategic 00:18:00.089 --> 00:18:03.430 progression through high caliber genre appropriate 00:18:03.430 --> 00:18:05.970 labels they weren't just randomly signing deals 00:18:05.970 --> 00:18:08.470 they were moving up the ladder within their chosen 00:18:08.470 --> 00:18:10.970 scene and creatively they're still going strong 00:18:10.970 --> 00:18:13.569 it shows the new identity is sustainable my entire 00:18:13.569 --> 00:18:16.730 life was their fifth studio album just last year 00:18:16.730 --> 00:18:19.529 2023 right and they're already prepping another 00:18:19.529 --> 00:18:21.789 release apparently a more niche focused one called 00:18:21.789 --> 00:18:25.109 susto string band volume one slated for 2025 00:18:25.109 --> 00:18:28.220 interesting string band Yeah, it shows they're 00:18:28.220 --> 00:18:31.319 not only prolific, but actively exploring those 00:18:31.319 --> 00:18:34.000 acoustic Americana textures even deeper within 00:18:34.000 --> 00:18:37.099 the Esteoso sound, really leaning into it. And 00:18:37.099 --> 00:18:39.420 all this increased visibility, it also translated 00:18:39.420 --> 00:18:41.500 into playing bigger stages, major festivals. 00:18:41.640 --> 00:18:43.220 Definitely. The source mentions them playing 00:18:43.220 --> 00:18:44.940 the High Water Festival, which is right there 00:18:44.940 --> 00:18:47.680 in North Charleston in 2018. Makes sense geographically. 00:18:47.759 --> 00:18:51.039 Yeah. But also, crucially, the South by Southwest 00:18:51.039 --> 00:18:54.839 Festival, SSSW, down in Austin, Texas in 2019. 00:18:55.529 --> 00:18:58.829 And playing SXSW is, that's kind of a rite of 00:18:58.829 --> 00:19:00.890 passage, isn't it? It's huge. It's a strategic 00:19:00.890 --> 00:19:03.829 necessity, really, for any band seeking national, 00:19:03.869 --> 00:19:06.450 even international exposure. It's where the industry, 00:19:06.630 --> 00:19:09.470 the media, thousands of fans all converge. So 00:19:09.470 --> 00:19:11.750 that performance really solidifies their status 00:19:11.750 --> 00:19:14.549 as a national level act, a buzzworthy band. Exactly. 00:19:14.549 --> 00:19:16.769 It demonstrates that this really profound personal 00:19:16.769 --> 00:19:20.509 shift from SPS to Sisto ultimately resulted in 00:19:20.509 --> 00:19:22.690 undeniable commercial and critical elevation 00:19:22.690 --> 00:19:25.940 for them. The gamble paid off. OK, so now we 00:19:25.940 --> 00:19:28.440 have the full arc of the shift laid out. Let's 00:19:28.440 --> 00:19:30.420 circle back and actually look at the music itself, 00:19:30.599 --> 00:19:33.440 the discography side by side, because the lyrical 00:19:33.440 --> 00:19:36.900 themes, the song titles. This feels like the 00:19:36.900 --> 00:19:38.960 most concrete evidence of that shift we've been 00:19:38.960 --> 00:19:42.119 talking about. From SPS's perceived life of sin 00:19:42.119 --> 00:19:45.859 to Esto really exploring that condition of the 00:19:45.859 --> 00:19:48.640 soul. Absolutely. This is where you really see 00:19:48.640 --> 00:19:51.079 the change manifest. So starting back with Sequoia 00:19:51.079 --> 00:19:53.779 Prep School, they had three main studio albums 00:19:53.779 --> 00:19:56.920 listed. Weights Are Heavy in 2005. We said hello 00:19:56.920 --> 00:20:00.200 in 2008. And also Ghost Town in 2008. The titles 00:20:00.200 --> 00:20:02.400 themselves, Weights Are Heavy, Ghost Town, they 00:20:02.400 --> 00:20:05.059 kind of lean into that introspective, maybe slightly 00:20:05.059 --> 00:20:07.660 dramatic, emotional vibe of early 2000s rock, 00:20:07.799 --> 00:20:09.720 don't they? They do. Weights Are Heavy, it feels 00:20:09.720 --> 00:20:12.480 classic, earnest, maybe a bit vaguely angsty. 00:20:12.559 --> 00:20:15.480 Yeah, emo adjacent, maybe. And if we look at 00:20:15.480 --> 00:20:17.740 some specific track names from SBS, the picture 00:20:17.740 --> 00:20:20.440 gets even clearer. We've got About Rain, Hurricane. 00:20:21.180 --> 00:20:24.099 Okay, weather themes. Sensibility. Interesting. 00:20:24.259 --> 00:20:26.880 Literary reference. Right. Feels sort of safe. 00:20:27.079 --> 00:20:29.839 Yeah. Emotionally grounded in that 90s rock storytelling 00:20:29.839 --> 00:20:34.480 style. Then Holy City and Lucille. Holy City 00:20:34.480 --> 00:20:37.180 likely referring to Charleston or the area, a 00:20:37.180 --> 00:20:39.920 bit of local pride maybe. But overall, lyrically, 00:20:40.079 --> 00:20:42.740 SPS seemed to be operating in a pretty recognizable 00:20:42.740 --> 00:20:45.680 tradition. Meaning? Writing about love, loss, 00:20:46.039 --> 00:20:49.299 the weather, maybe some local references. but 00:20:49.299 --> 00:20:52.039 without really pushing into overtly provocative 00:20:52.039 --> 00:20:54.819 or like confrontational theological territory. 00:20:54.880 --> 00:20:56.920 Right. They were a successful band writing solid, 00:20:57.140 --> 00:20:59.539 accessible folk rock songs, nothing inherently 00:20:59.539 --> 00:21:02.079 sinful looking from the outside, you know. Exactly. 00:21:02.079 --> 00:21:05.480 But the contrast, when you pivot to susto singles 00:21:05.480 --> 00:21:08.400 and album titles, it's seismic. It's immediate. 00:21:08.720 --> 00:21:10.500 Yeah. This is where the band just explicitly 00:21:10.500 --> 00:21:12.420 delivers on the promise of that susto identity. 00:21:13.009 --> 00:21:15.869 The themes immediately jump to this very explicit, 00:21:16.009 --> 00:21:18.890 often kind of irreverent or darkly humorous engagement 00:21:18.890 --> 00:21:22.869 with faith, doubt, God, the darkness they mentioned. 00:21:22.970 --> 00:21:24.529 Okay, give me an example. This is where the depth 00:21:24.529 --> 00:21:26.089 really lies, like you said. Okay, consider this 00:21:26.089 --> 00:21:27.910 single title. Yeah. Chilling on the Beach with 00:21:27.910 --> 00:21:30.589 My Best Friend Jesus Christ, released in 2016. 00:21:30.950 --> 00:21:34.690 Wow. Now, compare that directly to an SBS title 00:21:34.690 --> 00:21:37.529 like Sense and Sensibility. Worlds Apart. One 00:21:37.529 --> 00:21:40.990 is polite, literary, observational, maybe. The 00:21:40.990 --> 00:21:44.650 other is shocking, casual. It's this juxtaposition 00:21:44.650 --> 00:21:47.069 of the most sacred figure imaginable, Jesus Christ, 00:21:47.250 --> 00:21:49.809 with the totally mundane image of chilling on 00:21:49.809 --> 00:21:52.410 a beach. Exactly. It feels like a complete thematic 00:21:52.410 --> 00:21:55.450 liberation. The titles themselves become confrontational. 00:21:55.509 --> 00:21:57.789 They challenge your expectations. They seem to 00:21:57.789 --> 00:22:00.210 embrace the complexity, the messiness of faith 00:22:00.210 --> 00:22:03.250 and doubt, rather than hiding it behind safer, 00:22:03.410 --> 00:22:06.190 more vague emotional language. And that continues, 00:22:06.349 --> 00:22:08.970 right? There was another single, Hyperbolic Jesus, 00:22:09.130 --> 00:22:11.089 that came out before the My Entire Life album 00:22:11.089 --> 00:22:14.170 in 2023. Yes. Even the language itself feels 00:22:14.170 --> 00:22:16.710 more sophisticated, maybe a bit satirical, using 00:22:16.710 --> 00:22:18.589 a word like hyperbolic to talk about theological 00:22:18.589 --> 00:22:21.210 ideas. So these songs, these titles, they directly 00:22:21.210 --> 00:22:23.529 fulfill that journey. Osborne started with the 00:22:23.529 --> 00:22:25.910 whole life of sin reflection back in 2010. It 00:22:25.910 --> 00:22:27.710 really seems like it. They're taking those intensely 00:22:27.710 --> 00:22:30.569 personal, maybe spiritual conflicts, and turning 00:22:30.569 --> 00:22:32.410 them directly into their art, their repeatable 00:22:32.410 --> 00:22:35.329 commercial art. The new music just isn't afraid 00:22:35.329 --> 00:22:38.259 to ask. tough questions or be irreverent or get 00:22:38.259 --> 00:22:40.680 deeply personal about that search for meaning. 00:22:41.059 --> 00:22:44.200 That's exactly how it feels. And even the STO 00:22:44.200 --> 00:22:47.470 album titles like. And I'm fine today with that 00:22:47.470 --> 00:22:50.109 sort of implicit qualifier or ever since I lost 00:22:50.109 --> 00:22:53.670 my mind in my entire life. They all suggest a 00:22:53.670 --> 00:22:56.730 much wider scope of psychological, maybe spiritual 00:22:56.730 --> 00:22:59.490 exploration than the earlier, more contained 00:22:59.490 --> 00:23:01.910 SPS titles like Weights Are Heavy. Yeah, the 00:23:01.910 --> 00:23:04.549 scale feels bigger. And we also see their commitment 00:23:04.549 --> 00:23:07.089 to the live show reflected in SDO's output, too, 00:23:07.170 --> 00:23:09.069 right? They've released live albums. Yeah, things 00:23:09.069 --> 00:23:11.250 like live from the Australian Country Music Hall 00:23:11.250 --> 00:23:13.910 of Fame back in 2015 and more recently live from 00:23:13.910 --> 00:23:16.690 Codfish Hollow in 2020. It demonstrates that 00:23:16.690 --> 00:23:19.910 the SCO sound isn't just a studio creation, it's 00:23:19.910 --> 00:23:22.630 robust and translates effectively live. Okay, 00:23:22.670 --> 00:23:24.730 so when we put it all together, when we synthesize 00:23:24.730 --> 00:23:27.150 this whole journey, it seems clear the break 00:23:27.150 --> 00:23:29.170 wasn't just about changing the style slightly. 00:23:29.329 --> 00:23:31.829 It felt like a philosophical necessity for them. 00:23:31.990 --> 00:23:33.549 I think that's right. The original band, SBS, 00:23:33.750 --> 00:23:36.390 was a success, sure. Built on that kind of hard 00:23:36.390 --> 00:23:38.789 -to -define mix of polished 90s rock and traditional 00:23:38.789 --> 00:23:41.650 folk. But the core musicians, they kept some 00:23:41.650 --> 00:23:43.349 essential elements, didn't they? The acoustic 00:23:43.349 --> 00:23:46.119 guitar, the... The banjo, the piano, thanks to 00:23:46.119 --> 00:23:48.759 guys like Hick staying on initially and Osborne 00:23:48.759 --> 00:23:50.920 leading. Exactly. The tools remained. Right. 00:23:51.019 --> 00:23:53.759 But the context for those tools fundamentally 00:23:53.759 --> 00:23:56.940 shifted. Also. Well, that instrumentation, it 00:23:56.940 --> 00:23:59.539 was redirected. Instead of serving the sort of 00:23:59.539 --> 00:24:02.960 emotional, maybe radio friendly folk rock of 00:24:02.960 --> 00:24:06.200 SPS, it started providing the starker, more textured 00:24:06.200 --> 00:24:09.500 backdrop for Vasto's intense thematic focus, 00:24:09.559 --> 00:24:12.460 that spiritual fear, that existential searching. 00:24:12.680 --> 00:24:15.180 So they moved from. just blending styles to landing 00:24:15.180 --> 00:24:18.279 in this more mature American indie space where 00:24:18.279 --> 00:24:20.640 the genre is defined as much by the depth of 00:24:20.640 --> 00:24:23.099 the subject matter, the susto itself, as by the 00:24:23.099 --> 00:24:25.680 instruments being played. Well put, yeah. The 00:24:25.680 --> 00:24:27.539 ultimate conclusion, I think, is that this whole 00:24:27.539 --> 00:24:29.599 transition just powerfully demonstrates the role 00:24:29.599 --> 00:24:32.460 of self -evaluation, even harsh self -criticism 00:24:32.460 --> 00:24:34.960 in art. That foundational break, that feeling 00:24:34.960 --> 00:24:37.099 of needing to abandon a past they deemed sinful. 00:24:37.619 --> 00:24:40.319 It paradoxically allowed Osborne and the group 00:24:40.319 --> 00:24:42.519 to settle into a sound that's arguably far more 00:24:42.519 --> 00:24:49.240 defined. So they found clarity by actually embracing 00:24:49.240 --> 00:24:53.619 the crisis, the darkness. It seems that way. 00:24:53.700 --> 00:24:56.119 The journey really proves that sometimes maybe 00:24:56.119 --> 00:24:58.500 to find your truest sound, to really define your 00:24:58.500 --> 00:25:01.299 artistic space, you first have to confront and 00:25:01.299 --> 00:25:03.380 maybe even document the murky parts of your own 00:25:03.380 --> 00:25:06.119 personal history. And then commit to... using 00:25:06.119 --> 00:25:08.720 that darkness that complexity as your primary 00:25:08.720 --> 00:25:11.359 source material going forward hashtag tag outro 00:25:11.359 --> 00:25:15.740 wow what a deep dive that was into artistic reinvention 00:25:15.740 --> 00:25:19.279 conviction maybe even redemption in a way it 00:25:19.279 --> 00:25:21.440 really covers a lot of ground yeah we've traced 00:25:21.440 --> 00:25:24.460 this evolution from sequoia prep school successful 00:25:24.460 --> 00:25:26.759 but apparently deeply self -critical to sesto 00:25:26.759 --> 00:25:29.920 who are critically respected prolific and seem 00:25:29.920 --> 00:25:32.200 much more comfortable in their own skin musically 00:25:32.200 --> 00:25:34.329 and thematically Yeah, it really is an exemplary 00:25:34.329 --> 00:25:36.549 case of how an identity crisis, that feeling 00:25:36.549 --> 00:25:38.509 of being on the long path, can actually fuel 00:25:38.509 --> 00:25:40.950 a creative and ultimately successful breakthrough. 00:25:41.210 --> 00:25:42.890 And if we zoom out, look at the bigger picture 00:25:42.890 --> 00:25:45.509 here. Yeah. It raises this really essential question 00:25:45.509 --> 00:25:48.170 for any artist, any creative person or entity, 00:25:48.269 --> 00:25:50.410 really. It is. When an established identity gets 00:25:50.410 --> 00:25:53.680 discarded. When do you know if it's just a strategic 00:25:53.680 --> 00:25:56.039 rebrand, you know, fresh coat of paint, new logo, 00:25:56.160 --> 00:25:58.779 versus when it's a genuine, necessary declaration 00:25:58.779 --> 00:26:01.880 like we saw here? That feeling of having entered 00:26:01.880 --> 00:26:04.359 the darkness and can no longer return, which 00:26:04.359 --> 00:26:06.420 demands a complete artistic and philosophical 00:26:06.420 --> 00:26:09.220 reset. That's a tough line to gauge from the 00:26:09.220 --> 00:26:12.400 outside sometimes. But for Justin Osbourne and 00:26:12.400 --> 00:26:15.359 the shift to Sesto, it feels like the music itself 00:26:15.359 --> 00:26:18.099 became the direct exploration of that intense 00:26:18.099 --> 00:26:20.910 fear that Sesto, the condition of the soul. Yeah, 00:26:20.930 --> 00:26:23.049 they took what they perceived as a failure or 00:26:23.049 --> 00:26:25.509 maybe that life of sin, and they managed to use 00:26:25.509 --> 00:26:27.869 it as the launch pad for what seems to be their 00:26:27.869 --> 00:26:30.509 most artistically sustainable and arguably most 00:26:30.509 --> 00:26:32.690 successful chapter yet. So the final takeaway 00:26:32.690 --> 00:26:34.950 for you, the listener, might be about the incredible 00:26:34.950 --> 00:26:37.430 power, the potency of turning difficult personal 00:26:37.430 --> 00:26:40.559 history into public art. right this story really 00:26:40.559 --> 00:26:43.039 seems to prove that the deepest cuts those really 00:26:43.039 --> 00:26:46.160 honest confrontations with your own past your 00:26:46.160 --> 00:26:49.119 own morality your own fears they can ultimately 00:26:49.119 --> 00:26:51.559 become the sharpest the most resonant and maybe 00:26:51.559 --> 00:26:53.460 even the most successful force material for the 00:26:53.460 --> 00:26:56.039 art that comes next it suggests that artistic 00:26:56.039 --> 00:26:58.519 maturity sometimes is born from a kind of profound 00:26:58.519 --> 00:26:59.660 self -rejection first