Joey Nebulous
photo courtesy of the artist
Joey Nebulous is a pop project crafted from the mind of Joseph Farago. Starting in his college dorm in late 2015, the band began as an operation of close friends. With the support of Farago’s gifted and reassuring bandmates, Joey Nebulous has performed around the country, playing at huge venues like Brooklyn Bazaar with Remember Sports and performing alongside indie rock legends like Soccer Mommy. Farago was also lucky enough to collaborate with his musical hero Frankie Cosmos on the single “Break,” which was released in April 2023.
Once Farago left school, new band members were added to the lineup in 2018 and 2019: Margaret McCarthy on keys and vocals, Logan Novak on drums, and Wilson Brehmer on bass and vocals. Together, the group set out to craft unequivocally light-hearted music that appealed to a different audience in Chicago’s rock scene. Their songs about pop culture, gay relationships, and comical fantasies were quickly noticed by the queerdos of the city’s music community, illuminating a pathway for the band’s longevity.
After years of performing around the midwest, Joey Nebulous is gearing up to release their debut on Dear Life Records. The album contains more than half a decade of songwriting and determination, a tireless output only achieved by the support and input of Chicago’s loyal music scene.
Joey Spumoni Creamy Dreamy Party All The Time is a record almost five years in the making. Combining some of Farago’s favorite words, the title mimics the music’s facetious outlook and commitment to fun and pleasure. Joey Nebulous has always been a place for Farago to escape his depression, often writing about hedonism, pop icons, and friendship to placate the harshness of growing up in this current climate. The record explores the beauty of everyday foods, the importance of connection, and the blessed parts of being LGBTQ+, hoping listeners will find joy and reverence for commonplace meals and moments, too.
Recorded initially in late 2020, Joey Spumoni was an absolute labor of love for all parties involved. Drums were recorded in December 2020 at the height of the pandemic with recording engineer and periodic band member Seth Engel. With in-person sessions becoming increasingly tricky in lockdown, Farago leaned on a close friend, musician, and engineer Vivian McCall for home recording help. In her Ravenswood apartment, many of the guitar tracks and synths were finalized, molding the drum tracks into something more significant, revealing a light at the end of the tunnel. In the summer of 2021, Farago began recording vocals and other instruments between engineer and drummer Abby Black at Audiotree and Engel’s new studio in Garfield Park. With Nico Jodi Levine’s final home-recording prowess, the album’s vast song collection was completed at last.
The mixing process for the record began in 2022 by Lucas Knapp and was mastered later in the year by Heather Jones; both individuals are legendary Philadelphia artists who’ve provided their talents to countless, inimitable bands. After years of endless songwriting and collaborations, Joey Nebulous’s debut record is ready to make a gay and uplifting splash in the pop music world.
Joey Spumoni Creamy Dreamy Party All The Time is dedicated to all the queer people who felt like they couldn’t excel in their passions, for all the kids who were ridiculed for their interests or told they couldn’t succeed. This record rejoices in pop culture, often deemed superficial or tasteless, and celebrates daydreams and fantasies that LGBTQ+ youth are often shamed for. With this debut, Farago and his team of misfits are committed to connecting the Charli XCX lovers with the indie rock heads, the baking show enjoyers, the Halloween fanatics, and everyone in between.
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Releases on Dear Life:
