All Good Things – Mexico

All Good Things - Robotik Folk Album Cover
One of my favorite things about playing shows is meeting the other bands on the bill. The day I met John Petty from All Good Things was a great day. He played a phenomenal set late into the night (early into the next morning). As I loaded my equipment out the bar door into my car the snow was falling and I found myself humming a tune. Mexico.

All Good Things is a Madison, Wisconsin based project, led by John Petty. This excerpt from their Facebook page sums up my thoughts pretty well.

“Using different techniques, Petty has a sound unlike most traditional Folk artists. He blends Folk, Bluegrass, Pop, and Indie/Rock into something that transcends what you might not be expecting. Without revealing his secret to writing lyrics, his words are strong in the sound and meaning behind each song.”

This is simply just a wonderful piece of music. Tones of Richie Havens style percussive guitar and catchy, repetitive vocals get us going early. His passion for performing has been captured in this studio recording of the song, which isn’t always the case. His vocal delivery was the most striking part of watching All Good Things perform. He utilizes a dual microphone setup, which allows him to apply effects to two separate vocal channels. By singing into one or a mix of both he is able to drastically alter the way his voice is amplified and processed.
I have personally never seen this done live before but I thought he pulled it off with mastery. I have to admit that as a banjo player I do tend to get overwhelmed with large amounts of technology in use. I was genuinely impressed at John’s ability to deliver a great acoustic guitar performance while utilizing looping pedals and a veritable quiver of effects.
I highly recommend getting out and supporting All Good Things if you ever get the chance. If you dug this track head on over to the All Good Things Facebook page to learn more. Here is a link straight to the All Good Things Tour page.
John was gracious enough to allow us to embed the official track in this page so I’ll leave you with the full mp3 version of this great song. Make sure you say thank you by seeing them live, buying the album, sharing it with your friends, or just telling him that you like it. Seriously click here, and like his Facebook page, it won’t cost you a thing.

 

 “At 5am I told myself I’ll never go to Mexico again.” –John Petty