SUSTO finds 'Time in the Sun' at Victory North in Savannah
Justin Osborne took his band’s name, SUSTO, from a Latin American term that refers to a condition of constant spiritual panic, a feeling that most people can probably relate to these days.
Rather than taking it as a negative thing, however, Osborne has captured the feeling of susto and used it as driving force in his music career which now spans four albums and a handful of live recordings.
Osborne began playing music as a child on his family’s old Yamaha parlor guitar, an heirloom that he was forbidden to touch, but he snuck time on anyway. In later years, Osborne hustled with another band, trying to find his place in the music scene, but lost confidence. The feeling of susto set in and Osborne abandoned music to pursue an anthropology degree studying in Cuba. It was in Cuba that Osborne rediscovered his desire to write music and the confidence to express himself fully through his music.
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To ensure he never abandoned his passion again, Osborne got the words “ACID BOYZ” (now the name of his record label) tattooed on his knuckles. He not returning to the 9-5 grind anytime soon.
SUSTO’s latest album, "Time in the Sun" (New West Records 2021), was written and recorded during the pandemic and grew from joyful events and tumultuous times.
“I had been going through a lot at that point,” said Osborne. “I had become a dad pretty recently and then lost my own dad and that was what I was focused on on the record.”
SUSTO recorded "Time in the Sun" with in-demand producer Wolfgang Zimmerman (Band of Horses, Brave Baby) in his The Space studio in Charleston, S.C. With touring on pause SUSTO and Zimmerman had ample time to mold the record into the band’s best yet.
“We started recording before the pandemic kicked in full gear, but only shortly before that,” Osborne recalled. “We thought we’d take that as it comes, but then a lot of time fell in our laps. We just started spending a lot of time in the studio. Slowly but surely we had a record.”
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"Time in the Sun" is full of wide-open confessional Americana and rock songs written by Osborne lifted to the sky by richly layered, often psychedelic production. The introduction to album opener, “Time, Love, & Fun,” lifts the curtains with odd robot vocal effects from a Prophet keyboard spoken over bird song and gently swirling synthesizers. Osborne's world-weary vocals ruminate on mortality accompanied by gently plucked guitar strings and high-and-lonesome pedal steel. The song eventually builds up to a climax of fuzzed out guitars and crashing drums.
The dynamic opener sets the tone for the rest of the album which deftly combines elements of folk, rock, psychedelic pop, and Americana throughout.
“Every time with the records I want them to feel like when you start you’re entering some sort of journey,” said Osborne. “I know not everyone consumes records that way. Sometimes you’re just going to hear a song, and then you’re going to hear the record on shuffle, but when we’re making them, we’re making them to be heard in sequence with the start being like the opening of a play.”
After a much needed break, SUSTO is embarking on another headlining tour to support the record, with a stop at Victory North in Savannah. SUSTO will be supported by folk-rocker Howdy.
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“I’m really excited for the support acts we have on this tour,” Osborne said of Howdy. “I just found him through Spotify. He came up on my fiance and my weekly discover playlist and we were like, ‘That’s awesome.’ I followed him on Instagram and said we should play some shows together. He’s going to be joining us so that will be fun seeing him.”
SUSTO’s flexible line-up can be anything from Osborne with an acoustic guitar up to a room-filling seven-piece, but on this tour SUSTO will be a five-piece anchored by the band’s backbone Marshall Hudson on drums and guitarist Johnny Delaware.
“It’s taken awhile for touring to come back in full force and I’m looking forward to it being back,” said Osborne. “That’s the way it’s been feeling every tour we’ve done. It feels a little more like, ‘Oh, this is how touring is,’ but it’s taken awhile to get back there. But, we’ve been seeing our crowds start to show back up and we’re excited to meet them there.”
“Touring can be a lot of work, and it makes it a lot more fun and makes it feel worth it whenever people are out there singing songs back to you.”
IF YOU GO
What: SUSTO with Howdy
When: Saturday at 8 p.m.
Where: Victory North Savannah, 2603 Whitaker St.
Cost $18+
Info: victorynorthsavannah.com
This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Savannah GA concerts: SUSTO at Victory North Savannah
