A CARRBROOK musician with a glittering reputation is reminding everyone about self-belief with the release of his latest self-produced single, Be Myself.
Cobain Jones is a familiar name on the music scene – as he has been for six years, beginning back in 2018 with the track Listen.
Since then, he has been on an unstoppable rise, notably having played at Kendal Calling music festival and appearing as a support act for Paul Weller.
Cobain has also had help from top British musicians with producing – including Manic Street Preachers’ James Dean Bradfield and The Coral’s James Skelly.
Now his latest track – which is instantly catchy, with a great counterbalance between the more reflective and melancholic lyrics upon the upbeat instrumentation – is a reflection through his past and how he has at times forgotten to be himself.
“Just be yourself,” Cobain stated. “Don’t care what other people think, even if their opinion changes of you from bad to good. Just know it comes from a disingenuous angle and prove everyone wrong!
“I would definitely say it was a self-reflection of my mid-late teens and the whole palaver of growing up and making friends, relationships etc and how it can be a drain on you if you’re not used to it.”
Surprisingly, Be Myself was recorded straight from Cobain’s bedroom and not a studio, as its quality would have you think!
Speaking on the process of creating the track, Cobain told The Correspondent: “It varies.
“Sometimes I have a guitar and can write a song straight away, maybe write something down and read it months later and work on that or have a riff and build from that.
“My process isn’t black and white and depends on where I’m at in my life currently. Originally this song was about reintegration after Covid-19 but it soon took on a whole different meaning into the track you hear now!
“It came from a demo recorded in my bedroom as it had a magic I just could not replicate!”
It is easy to understand the magic Cobain talks of – the track has such a catchy guitar sound, and will undoubtedly become one of his most appreciated tracks very quickly
Perhaps even more magical is the fact that these releases are all self-published and without the help of a bigger label, meaning that Cobain has had no industry help with any of his music – which may be a fitting fact for his latest track.
“It is all money really,” he added about how this impacts his music and how it can be difficult for independent musicians to get nationally recognised.
“If you want to be played on national radio you either need a great favour or money to pay radio pluggers and PR people which I don’t have a spare few grand to chuck at promotion.
“Most bands go down the funding route but even then, applications are rarely accepted so it’s tough for everybody.”
Even without funding from labels, Cobain is making a name for himself and the latest track shows just how far he has come as a musician.
He continued: “It just goes to show that I can do it on my own and if I don’t have the support of a label or a studio I can be self-sufficient with production!”
*TO HEAR Cobain perform this track and more from his catalogue, you can see him live on Friday, October 4 at Dukinfield Golf Club, or at Manchester’s Academy One on December 28, supporting The Lottery Winners.