Simon Doom

Simon O’Connor, the man behind the Simon Doom moniker, previously worked with Tommy Stinson of The Replacements on a self-titled EP in 2015. He followed that with Negotiate With the Monkey EP the following year (mixed by Ayad Al Adhamy - Passion Pit, Team Spirit). Still, the new Simon Doom record, Babyman, is a bold step in a new direction for O’Connor that feels like a fresh introduction to the world.

Whether it be his role in more prominent bands like Kuroma and Amazing Baby or taking a comical approach to the lyrics, there was always something O’Connor could point to indicating Simon Doom was ‘just a hobby project’ in the past. Then in late 2015, O’Connor had his doomsday clock officially punched when his wife gave birth to their son. Feeling as though it may be his last chance to go all-in on the project, O’Connor fought through what was a year-long creative drought to come up with 10 songs in just over a month. These songs managed to convey a lifetime of musical experiences, from the DIY punk of O’Connor’s teenage years to the psych-rock bands he’d spent his adult life touring with and the 80’s College Rock and Proto-Alternative that he was listening to a lot of while writing, in one cohesive sound. As a collection, Babyman explores sources O’Connor hadn't been able to fully tap into previously while simultaneously cherry-picking the best aspects of the project’s first two EPs. The result is a beautiful rock record that tackles a lot of concepts both sonically and lyrically without straying too far away from what O’Connor’s ambitions were with the album.

While O’Connor’s is undoubtedly the creative force behind Babyman, his co-producers Andrew Vanwyngarden and Ben Goldwasser (both of MGMT) also had a profound effect on the record. As did other collaborators, such as Anni Rossi, Cameron Avery (of Tame Impala) and the other members of Simon Doom’s band. Live, he will be joined by the same band that he has played with since their first show at Glasslands back in 2014. This lineup includes Jim Carroll (Clouds, Pure Love) on guitar and William Flynn (formerly of St. Vincent) on bass, both of whom O’Connor has known since guitar camp when they were all 15-years-old, as well as Will Berman (MGMT, Kuroma) and Brandon Collins (Apse) on guitar and drums respectively.

This is Simon O’Connor’s post-baby record much in the way In Utero was for Kurt Cobain or Smoke Rings For My Halo for Kurt Vile. That sort of perspective can either kill an artist or push him to new creative heights. Babyman undoubtedly puts Simon Doom in the latter category. Look for it this May on Votiv Music.