In June of 2019, I received a new song in my email that would eventually become “Cold.” From there, the writing process really took off. We kept creating more and more songs, and everything was coming together incredibly well. As the material developed, we started imagining who would sound perfect performing on these tracks, and I began reaching out to some of those musicians. From the very beginning, I knew I wanted Michael Bormann’s raspy, soulful vocals on this project, so it was especially exciting when he agreed to sing for us. I also felt that Tony Franklin’s distinctive fretless bass style would bring a unique atmosphere and depth to the music. When searching for drummers, I discovered that Kevin Soffera actually lived very close to me and had his own fully equipped recording studio, which made collaborating even easier. I later contacted Matt Starr because I loved the drum work he played on the Black Swan album and thought his style would fit perfectly with what we were creating. While recording was underway, I reached out to Donnie Van Stavern from Riot. James and I had always been huge fans of Riot’s Thundersteel album, so I asked if he would be interested in playing on a few songs. We were thrilled when Donnie agreed, and even more excited when he told us that Riot drummer Bobby Jarzombek was still one of his closest friends and would be willing to join the project as well. Soon, we had a full album’s worth of songs — and an incredible lineup to bring them to life.
Barely Hanging On was released on May 3, 2021.
