11/01/2023
We don't come around here much lately … thankfully, been working and working and tending that grindstone. But a little blast from the past is a pretty good reason to come around. Especially when it's Cade Martin Photography … Cade played no small part in making this come together and making it as good as it is over at the labor of love, Sunrise Ocean Bender. Deep and wide thanks to Cade, always.
—K
“ … a monumental creation, an album that refuses to blend into anything approaching either deafening polemic or simple background noise … Seek it out, and pay attention. It’s worth it.”—Goldmine Magazine
“…JuJu fuses elements of psychedelia, glam, prog and post-punk into a propulsive, melodic art rock. Valenti describes JuJu’s self-titled debut long-players as “my personal tribute to the big music I’ve always loved, regardless of genre.” But the album also has a more serious intention, sourcing the refugee crisis as its primary inspiration: ”Where I live in Sicily, we literally see children die among the waves.” For Valenti, the music and words “conspire with ancient symbols and arcane memory, something buried deep in the collective unconscious of the Mediterranean, to give voice to a ‘drowning’ culture.””—MOJO Magazine
My first album cover.
As a photographer, I never know what is coming around the corner, and I love it.
I’ve known Kevin McFadin at Sunrise Ocean Bender Records and Fan Works Design for more than a minute, and I was more than happy to collaborate on an album cover.
Thank you Kevin. Thank you Gioele Valenti aka Juju