Los Angeles-based producer-songwriter John Philbrick is stepping up to rep session musicians, trailblaze for background singers and unsung songwriters, and reveal the depth of talent that bolsters the hitmakers we hear all the time. A session guitarist trained at the Berklee School of Music, Philbrick is extremely well-connected to top talent in the City of Angels. That’s how he met collaborators Justin Gariano, Dusty Schaller (Evanescence, Evaride, Reignwolf), and vocalist/keyboardist Steve Maggiora (Toto), who eventually would help him put together his debut album If You Say So. The record flexes not only Philbrick’s vast network of talented friends but also his broad range of influences and shredding expertise. Flowing from Van Halen-esque riffs to bluesy dance-along classics, the album breezes by with the ferocity and style of a 70s hot rod. Mixed by GRAMMY-winning Ross Hogarth (Edgar Winter, Van Halen, Doobie Brothers), and mastered by GRAMMY-winning Richard Dodd (The Black Keys, Larkin Poe, Tom Petty, Boz Scaggs), the album offers a showcase for Philbrick’s eclectic guitar style, which owes its impressive breadth to acts like Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, Guns N’ Roses, Nirvana, and B.B. King. Before the summer fades, take one last windows-down joy ride with John Philbrick’s high-octane If You Say So.
Hot off of the aforementioned album If You Say So, John Philbrick’s strutting and screeching rock outcry “Losing Out to Crazy” offers an energetic stage to vent out frustration at the madness of the status quo. Over Philbrick’s unrelenting chords and pounding drums, lead singer Steve Maggiora belts out his angst towards the endless squabbling of modern pundits. Mimicking the emotional shrieks of Philbrick’s guitar, Maggiora begs for a return to peace, love, faith, and brotherhood. Rock on towards righteousness with Philbrick and Maggiora in “Losing Out to Crazy.”
And lean deeper into the fist-pumping fury of Philbrick and Maggiora’s anthem with the official lyric video for “Losing Out to Crazy.” As Maggiora’s powerful words flutter on screen, the video depicts a vacant, red-saturated Los Angeles. Uncertain whether the scenes are post-apocalyptic or merely pre-dawn, we’re standing at a moment of choice to either let the crazy take over or wake up to a new way of being. Luckily, waking up is the only option when faced with the combination of these stunning visuals and Philbrick’s hardcore shredding.
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