Although still only a senior in High School, Max Gowan nonetheless has the drive and determination to succeed. Having played guitar since the age of 8, Max has also studied jazz and music theory.
Getting into metal when he was younger, he joined a thrash metal band made up of fellow Middle School students.
Leaving the band, he started writing his own solo acoustic music, and released an EP, ‘Restless Heaven‘, last year. This garnered some good reviews online, and saw Max gigging in coffeehouses in his hometown of Raleigh, North Carolina.
Max has now written, recorded and mixed his new album, ‘Big People’, in his home studio – aka his bedroom. It’s Alt Rock/Alt Pop, with influences including Wilco, Elliott Smith, Alex G, and Deerhunter.
Recording in any spare time he had outside of school hours, Max plays all the instruments and provides all vocals on the album. It’s a beautiful album demonstrating Max’s considerable musical skill and artistry.
We really liked ‘Window’, a shimmering track about people working out what they’re searching for.
Lead track, ‘Rare Thing’ is reminiscent of 60s So Cal pop with even the slightest hint of Nirvana.
‘Face’, a Lo-Fi track that again has that 90s vibe, very pleasing. Max reminds us a bit of much missed Irish band, The Thrills, whose debut album ‘So Much For The City’ carried a lot of the same sort of breezy summer feel about it.
‘Big People’ is available as a digital download from Max’s Bandcamp site. You can also find Max on Twitter and Facebook.
