AJ John is a 22-year-old musician from Atlanta, GA. After graduating from Woodward Academy in 2016, he went on to Georgia Tech and received his BS in Computer Science in 2020. He divides his time between working as a software developer and writing, recording and performing music in his free time. He is primarily a drummer and singer, but he also lends his chops playing guitar, bass and piano as well. Music has been an integral part of his life growing up. He started taking piano lessons when he was five and travelled the world singing as a member of the Georgia Boy Choir through his childhood and teenage years. During his high school and college years, he was very active in marching and jazz bands, and briefly played drums in the short-lived pop outfit Millennial Pink and co-founded the band LastNameFirst. John currently brings to the table his latest offering Till The End Of Time.
Though at its heart, the album is a rock n’ roll record, the songs on the album also veer into hard rock and metal territory. What is undeniable is the classic rock influences that permeate the sounds of this record. John never loses sight of his influences. While he names his two main inspirations as Peter Furler and Dave Grohl, at its core, a lot of the sound stems from a vibe reminiscent of ‘60s/’70s era of rock music. John brings the vintage sounds of rock bands of another time, all the while pushing the genre forward well into a new decade of rock music. Till The End Of Time gets going with “Take It Back.” The guitar riffs slowly build with the help of drums and bass lines. The vibe is revving once John’s vocals comes in. The band rocks long and hard throughout the courses of the track. Following is “Legacy,” where pensive noodling on the acoustic guitar struts in. The track contains anthemic instrumentals. The combined vocal harmonies were very soulful and I could feel myself being carried away by the music. A smooth transition follows from the previous track as the last line “…find your destiny” then segues into aptly enough, “Destiny.” Shimmering guitars roll forth on this number. The band seems invested in jamming out as they throw themselves into the music, playing with enthused fervor. The band really gets moving with more guitars on “Show You Who I Am.” They really load on the sound, layering the drum fills with toxic vocals reverberating with a gritty vibe. This song covers a harder sound than seen in the previous songs. I thought the energy really picked up here. Right off the bat, the vocals come in alongside a melancholy-tinged piano melody on “Requiem.” I could really feel the emotions brimming from this track. The mood builds and the music becomes more impactful toward the 1:30 minute mark, going for a more full-throttle sound. More revved guitars add to the driven rock sounds on “Forward.” The bouncy drumming beats and soaring vocals add to the fire. On the title track, a playful piano melody trickles in. John’s vocals eventually join in the piano segment. The tune was easy to follow and had a great sing-along feel to it. The album closes with epic-sounding synths and anthems-driven guitar work on “Fearful Symmetry.” John’s operatic vocals hail the maelstrom and the music sweeps in, bombarded with a theatrical and revved sound. While John’s sound does take away a lot from the sounds and styles of old school rock n’ roll, I was hoping while listening to the record that he would add more of his own take to the music. But this doesn’t seem to happen on the scale that I was hoping for. It turns out he very much plays by the rules of Rock 101 on this album. But in certain instances, I could feel him breaking away from the mold with a wild growl here and there and snippets of random chord progressions that really gave the recording less of a rounded feel and more of the carefree abandon and slightly off-kilter vibe that is rooted in any true rock sound. I could really feel this especially in moments when the band really throws themselves into the music, jamming to their hearts’ content. As John states in his biography, his songs are about the journey. And so is music in a lot of ways. The album is a solid step forward and if anything, this should only be the beginning for the artist. I look forward to seeing where he goes next with his sound.
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