If you have not listened to Marcus Kings’ Mood Swings, stop what you are doing and listen to it STAT.
Last week, Marcus King released his highly anticipated project, Mood Swings, produced by the legendary Rick Rubin. Mood Swings is an album unlike any other project we have seen from King, but the refreshing change of pace in his sound highlights his vocals and songwriting talent to the highest degree. King noted that this album was really a deep dive into his past, leaning into his mental health struggles as a songwriting tool instead of suppressing those feelings.
The end product? Some of the most vulnerable and authentic songwriting I have heard.
The South Carolina native, usually ripping and roaring behind a guitar and mesmerizing the audience with his quick fingers, leaves the comfort of his guitar behind and makes a piano and his soulful vocals the focal point of the record. He composed the majority of the record on a piano, letting the thoughts of feeling like you aren’t good enough, combined with letting go of lingering feelings from a toxic relationship, drive the songwriting train.
“Sometimes a song is just in the room, and you’ve just got to get in there and help it get out.”
King said while chatting with Anthony Mason from CBS Mornings. Later in the interview, King noted that he is no longer worried about people’s thoughts as he opens up about his past struggles.
“It was a lot of acceptance and reckoning with my guilt and the way that I behaved in past relationships. You know I’m the problem…it was all coming from inside the house.”
King noted that his relationship with his now-wife, Briley, helped him pull himself out of the dark. He stated that he knew that he would have to clean up his act to win her over because she would not tolerate his wrongdoings. In working hard to win her over, he realized that he needed to look inward and face his past struggles and traumas.
“I was afraid (to talk about it) for so long. I didn’t want people to get the wrong impression of me. I didn’t want people to say, “Wow, this guy’s a little nuts,’ right? I feel really blessed where I am at right now. I feel absolved.”
This project was a labor of love, as King dug deep to highlight the story of a broken man in each track on the record. King leaned into his past as a form of therapy.
“I mean, it’s (music) great therapy. But real therapy, in addition, is always best…I found that out later.”
If you haven’t checked out Mood Swings yet, give a few a listen while you are here.
“Save Me”
“Delilah”