Django Soulo — 20 March 2024 on Rocket Shop Radio Hour

Monochrome photo by Ross Mickel

Django Soulo joined host Tom Proctor on ‘Rocket Shop,’ Big Heavy World’s weekly local Vermont music radio hour on 105.9 FM The Radiator. Catch up with them at instagram.com/djangosoulo

Text by Keagan Lafferty

When I was twelve, I went to the House of Guitars in Rochester, New York, and I felt my interest in music truly begin. The unique shop is proclaimed as “The Store That Ate Your Brain,” and although I don’t know what that means, I do know it’s true. Upon meeting Django Soulo at Rocket Shop, I noticed his House of Guitars t-shirt, and we immediately dove into conversation, finding that the store impacted us both in significant ways. Soulo’s guitar amp came from the House of Guitars, a Yamaha JX40 from the 1980s that would become an essential tool contributing to his creative endeavors. And as he used this amp to play some original music, Soulo’s honest Americana-Soul songwriting somehow ate my brain.

Soulo’s first song on Rocket Shop, “Hold the Line” is off his album 222 released in August of 2020 with Colin McCaffrey, local songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and producer. It begins with slow clean electric guitar chords that transpose keys and puts the listener into a dreamlike state before developing into a rhythmic boom-chuck strumming pattern. The song uses strategic palm mutes and a mix between finger-picking and strumming to create dynamics.

Soulo recently attended a show in Burlington by jazz-guitarist Julian Lage, praising Lage for how he defied expectations and inspired Soulo to think more about dynamics when playing guitar. “He just has gotten me thinking very specifically about every note. It completely rewired me,” said Soulo. “He's pushing what's possible with a guitar.”

This inspiration can definitely be seen as Soulo played his original songs, which are full of dynamic shifts in energy and carefully selected compositional choices. “I look at a song as a living breathing being,” said Soulo. His songwriting is emotional and heavy, but his sound has a positive and comforting energy as well. Songwriting is therapy to him, an outlet where he can turn difficult experiences into a meaningful work of art. 

Soulo’s most recent album, Shadow Work, certainly demonstrates Soulo’s intense and melancholy songwriting. The album was written during the COVID pandemic, in which Soulo began doing therapy. “I wanted to put out some music that captured what I felt a lot of us were going through,” said Soulo. “It's definitely dark. There's a lot of emotion in this album.”

Soulo performed on Rocket Shop on March 20th, a date of significance for him. “My friend, Kerry Monahan; It's his birthday today,” said Soulo, revealing that Kerry passed away recently. “[Shadow Work] is dedicated to him and another friend that passed away a few years ago, Nick McKeever.”

Soulo’s song performed on Rocket Shop, “Carry On,” is dedicated to Kerry. It’s heart-wrenching with a vulnerable feeling of sadness and beauty. “This time we have to carry on; this time we have to stay strong,” sings Soulo. “I’m gonna find you in the end; I’m gonna find you my friend.”

Prior to Shadow Work, Soulo released To the Moon, Alix, another COVID album. “These two albums are like the flip side of the same coin.” To the Moon, Alix was released on his wife’s birthday while both Soulo and his wife had COVID. “[The album] captured a lot of the lightness that came from COVID. And the deep love that I could feel with my wife.” The album title is inspired by the 1950s T.V show The Honeymooners. “I wanted to take that phrase and use it in a really lightweight way,” said Soulo. “It's a cosmic magic adventure with my life.”

Both Shadow Work and To the Moon, Alix were recorded and mixed by Soulo. Prior to that he always had an engineer, including Colin McCaffrey. “I wanted to try something new,” said Soulo. “And it scared me to record it myself [and] mix it myself.”

Soulo’s next song “Green Lights,” uses a looper pedal to create a full sound. “It's a great thing to have to make it fun for you in a live setting,” said Soulo. The song begins with a groovy chord progression then has a guitar solo before the vocals begin. The song is happy and comforting, with charming lyrics dedicated to his wife. “When I’m with you it’s always green lights,” sings Soulo. “Love is the car, you are the key.” After the song ends, Tom Proctor, who interviewed Soulo, said, “what a lovely little ditty.” I don’t think there’s a better way to describe “Green Lights.”

Soulo’s third song was played on his 1958 Martin guitar, which belonged to his mom, who received it from her own mother in 1970. The song began with a hypnotic rhythm he had written, but he wasn’t sure how to write lyrics for it. “Then my wife wrote a poem called ‘Parting Words for Two Dead Birds,’ and I took that poem with her permission and wrote this song right here,” said Soulo. 

“Parting Words for Two Dead Birds” begins with an improvisational prelude before developing into a captivating pattern as Soulo sings lyrics reflecting on the relationship between life and death. “My wife wrote the poem after her father passed away and she started seeing dead birds on the ground,” said Soulo. “Breathing and breathless,” Soulo sings as the guitar builds up in intensity. “There’s one thing I’ve learned; when it’s your time, you go.”

Aside from Soulo’s original projects, he also plays with local Americana trio The Larkspurs. The band came together in August of 2018 to promote Soulo’s album Alone Together, and then they played their first performance on Rocket Shop in 2019. While the band is currently on a temporary break, they have played countless shows and have found success with their original sound that combines folk, rock, blues, and country. 

“You’re saying that Big Heavy World was the reason why you became this super successful Burlington based band?” asked Tom Proctor. “I think that's the exact press quote you should pull from,” replied Soulo. “All my royalties from now on will go to Big Heavy World”