While my band, KNAPSACKHEROES!, is still very much alive and kicking, Vinyl Jones and I are both working on solo projects.
My first new project, which will be out before Christmas, will be Eric Coomer & The Kinesthetic Learners. That's the name of the band even though I am the whole band. Haven't decided on a title yet. This short EP will be made up of electronic music with lots of sampling and loops. I will be singing on it though. It's going to sound unlike anything else I've done. Musically, it falls somewhere between KNAPSACKHEROES!, St. Vincent, La Roux, and maybe Art of Noise...for lack of a better description. Thematically it has sort of a post-apocalyptic sci-fi Blade Runner feel. Yeah, I can't wait to hear it either.
 |
| The Cardigans Long Gone Before Daylight |
I will start recording the second project next March with Andrew Osenga producing. This will be a six to seven song EP with more of a singer/songwriter vibe that's very electric guitar driven. Influences for this record include The Cardigans' "Long Gone Before Daylight", John Mark McMillan's "The Medicine" (check out those Spotify links!), and albums by artists like Sixpence None the Richer, Over the Rhine, and Derek Webb.
 |
| Andrew Osenga Choosing Sides |
One of the biggest influences is Andrew himself. I asked him to produce it because I've been a fan of his ever since he was in The Normals. The sound of his solo albums like "Choosing Sides" is really what I'm hearing in my head for my music. You may have seen Andrew with Caedmon's Call (he's been a member for a few years now). Or maybe you saw him play guitar on the Andrew Peterson Behold the Lamb of God Christmas tour. He also co-produced that particular classic holiday album (sorry, it's not on Spotify).
 |
| Vinyl Jones Vinyl Jones & The Indie Fit Club |
I'm really excited about both of these projects as well as the Vinyl Jones & The Indie Fit Club project, which I'm also a small part of. And KNAPSACKHEROES! is currently writing new material and has (finally) taken the reins of our long awaited full length album.
So, stay tuned for more info. I'm going to be giving the Kinesthetic Learners album away for free and relying on your help to fund the second project with donations at kickstarter.com.
The first thing I need everyone to do though, is to go to http://facebook.com/theericcoomer and click Like. Then go check out the official Eric Coomer music website.
Oh! Listen to the Vinyl Jones project below. I'm on two of the songs.
