By Emily Herbein & Bre Cura

Jordan Caiola, frontman of the alt-rock outfit Mo Lowda & the Humble, has had a solo project in the works for the better part of five years. Now, while everyone has nothing but time and tours are put on hold, he’s gradually releasing singles under the artist name Caiola until the final drop in October. Pulling away from the heavy rock sounds of his full band in favor of something that leans in the directions of acoustic indie and western-inspired, the first look at this project feels like a completely new and separate entity from anything he’s put out before. Produced by Caiola and Shane Woods and mastered by Ryan Schwabe at Headroom Studios, Caiola has his usual cast of characters helping him out behind the scenes to create something unlike what they’re used to, and the result is confident and strong.

You’ve been sitting on this release for about five years. Quarantine aside, why does now feel like the right time?

Jordan: I would be lying if I said quarantine wasn’t a huge factor. I think maybe it was also because the wind had just kind of gone out of our sails after releasing an album March 6th, and having the entire national tour cancelled by March 14th. (Mo Lowda that is). I think we were all hurting. I know I was… and I looked at it as this sort of moment of giving in and wallowing or going after something with the time I had. I’ve had literally hundreds of songs in this vein that I had written over the years because they’re the simplest backbone of a song in a lot of ways - just starting with me and an acoustic guitar. A lot of those songs have just sort of gone to die or at least live in the back catalogue… though I did use/re-work a couple of them. They more so served as a starting point and a vision for this whole project. Once I had that… and once I decided to really put in the time to record the thing - I started writing a ton more songs in that space. All in all - felt like now or never I guess. This is the first time in 4 years we’ve been off the road for this long.

Bre: For sure, i know it was a huge hit for you guys, so I’m glad you've all been able to utilize this time in your own ways.

Was it easy or difficult to find your own sound even while collaborating with your Mo Lowda bandmates? Sometimes separation is difficult when working on solo projects and falling back into the groove of familiar work takes over. Did you experience that?

Jordan: I think these songs inherently just sound different from that stuff because of the choices made when writing them. That sort of parlayed into the way we produced and recorded them as well. They all felt different enough in the first place which is the reason they were never tailored to the Mo Lowda sound I think. So it happened naturally. Having Shane engineer and co-produce was seamless and I never felt like we were doing something we had done together before. (We’ve been playing together for 14 years now). That dude is just a pro - anything you throw at him, any genre, he chameleon’s his way into sounding like he’s specialized in that shit his whole life… We’ve been lucky to have him in the band for this many years and as a producer/engineer. A lot of other Philly musicians can say the same. He’s been hard at work on some really great projects. As for Jeff and Kirby’s contribution - Kirby has yet to record his part for the song that he will be on and I utilized Jeff as this differentiating factor in how the record would end up sounding. He’s only on a couple tracks - but I had these sort of straight forward songs that I wanted to stand out a bit more - throw a bit of a wrench into them so they weren’t just this standard Nashvillian sort of approach to these folk songs. He did that beautifully.. I just let him absolutely go to town on the Rhodes through one of his almost laughably large pedal boards and just about every take he would look back, I would be like “YUP” and we would move on to the next thing. I think “organic” was the name of the game for this whole album for me. No over-thinking. These songs exist as songs and I think they’re strong ones at that - just found ways to make them more interesting in a pair of headphones.

There has been a trend in some recent releases, an almost “western backdrop” to a modern alt-rock tonality. Other artists like Secret American, Ceramic Animal and Dominy have utilized it, and in “Finders Keepers” it's very recognizable. Would you say this is just chance, your personal style, or could it be a movement that is growing in the Philly scene?

Jordan: I actually wrote this tune 4 years ago - it’s one of those songs I kind of revamped… I’ve always loved that sort of western instrumentation and I tried to do it tastefully on this track with those spanky Stratocaster licks weaving in and out. I was really digging on some of that Michael Kiwanuka stuff a few years back. I wouldn’t say his stuff is EXACTLY comparable but it gives me the same feeling in some ways I think. I dig that western feel in general and that sort of outlaw country stuff from years ago - not to be confused with what some folks call “country” today… But there is some heavy slide guitar on the second single that’s all I’m saying. (shrug emoji)

Will the tracks released after this follow the same energy of “Finders Keepers’” or do they stand more on their own?

Jordan: It was really fun selecting the singles and the order in which they’ll be released. I chose to do 5 singles because frankly, why not? I kind of like the idea that half the album is released throughout the summer and then the second half comes out the second week of fall. It feels to me like there is a summer half and a fall half sonically. Singles in my mind should grab you - Obviously… but I genuinely chose my 5 favorite ones off the album for these - not the classic “which ones have mass appeal?” mindset. Though I think they work both ways… I love hooks… I love pop tunes… I love ear-worms. As far as the subsequent 4 singles they cover every little crevice that this album eventually gets into I think and that’s what I’m most excited about. Sort of a smorgasbord of what I can do - something for everyone I hope.

What’s the message behind “Finders Keepers” and that repeated phrase of “I’m the only one”?

Jordan: I think I took the sort of lighthearted approach to having a really tough time in the verses. Lines like “throw a penny in the wishing well just to fish it out again… even good luck says my money’s no good” is sort of poking fun at myself for having a little bit of a “woe is me” mentality. However, the chorus kind of makes it real - I think it is a feeling every one has had at some point. That feeling of aloneness or that feeling that I must be the only one who has to deal with shit like this… when really the irony lies within the fact that billions of people have had to have felt that at some point. “I’m the only one” repeated in the chorus is supposed to (hopefully) let the listener know that they really aren’t the only one. You’re never the only one. I hope this song gives a little bit of confidence or comfort or hope to someone who might be feeling it right now. It’s supposed to be uplifting over all… because I’m not the only one… and I know that.

Bre: So you almost want people to listen to it and disagree with you in a way, in the fact that exactly, you’re not the only one.

Did this song stem from a particular point in your life, or is it a “smattering” of experiences?

Jordan: I honestly cannot remember what inspired it - I wrote it so long ago. I referenced the Kennedy’s in the bridge because my ex girlfriend was reading a book about JFK at the time - the song has nothing to do with her… but that’s really the only thing that sticks out to me about any sort of inspiration behind it. Which I kind of love… the song is allowed to mean something different to me now in a way than perhaps what it meant when I wrote it… It’s rare you can have that sort of removal of self from something you created as an artist. After all - it doesn’t really matter what the song (once it’s out) meant to me… It’s what it means to the listener… It’s theirs now.

Bre: That's interesting, Kirby said basically the same thing. A lot of the times artists don't want to give that control over to the listener so it’s cool that you both kind of have that mindset.

Emily: I like how specific that one moment that stands out for you is, and how when I think of it, it makes me think of something totally different. So it’s sort of like shared control of the song. The Kennedy image is a very cool and tangible reference.

Why was this the first song you chose to release? Out of all of them.

Jordan: I think it’s an easy transition for people who may have heard Mo Lowda stuff… Let’s be honest we want that crossover. If people are familiar with me at all it is likely due to that project. So I sort of heard this one as an introduction to CAI•OLA. There are a lot of songs on the album with full drums through… I think some people may see a guy doing a solo record and expect everything to be really really stripped down and singer-songwriter-y type stuff… This is just as if I had a 7 piece band who all knew how to play everything and sing tons of doubles and harmonies. (which in Mo Lowda I totally do have 3 dudes that can do all that) but you know what I mean.

You compared Mo Lowda’s track “Crescent Moon” to this group of songs for sonic reasons. Can we expect some softer vibes like that in upcoming releases, or did you really try to stray away from that expected sound as you just mentioned?

Jordan: Oh no there are definitely tons of really mellow moments… and many moments of just voice and guitar - however, just about all of them at one point or another end up blossoming into the full-band treatment. I’ve been massively influenced by guys like Gregory Alan Isakov, Jose Gonzalez, Justin Vernon of Bon Iver etc. over the years and you DEFINITELY will hear those things poking through a bit - at least in the arrangements and the approach. The fourth single “Alaska” I think is most in my “wheelhouse” as a songwriter and is unlike any song I’ve ever released under any project. I also think that song really sets the tone for the album as a whole. “Crescent Moon” is a song that features the acoustic guitar prominently and has harmonies throughout - I think that’s why I drew the comparison to this group of songs. There is one track on the album that is just a one-take of me and an acoustic guitar in my bedroom that we never ended up re-recording. That one feels really special for that reason.

Bre: some of my favorite songs come out of one-takes, like Switchfoot’s “Let That Be Enough”, there’s a certain rough purity to them that’s hard to capture otherwise, so I’m excited about that. I listen to “Crescent Moon” at least once a day so I can’t wait to have more tracks to play.

Emily: One-takes are vulnerable. You either get it right or you don’t and that’s the beauty in the risk you take.

You can stream “Finders Keepers” below or anywhere you find music. The full Caiola release is due out on October 2, with four more subsequent singles every two weeks before.

"Finders Keepers" is Jordan Caiola's Seamless, Full-Force Transition Into Solo Territory