Nobody truly makes it “overnight”, right? Sure, with semi-recent innovations like home studios and TikTok the exposure pipeline is more greased than ever. But even then it’s not like the most skilled songsmith just pens something new, gets it tracked, and has an instant hit the very next day. No, you need years of experience, your share of stages to cut your teeth on, and with rare lo-fi exceptions, a high enough production value to put the hook in the masses.
So today we’re doing our part to help fuel the flames for Austin up-and-comer Jon Funnell. Jon’s Cedar Park upbringing was largely spent with his trusty six-string in tow, but only leaned into his songwriting predilection once he became a Red Raider. When the pandemic hit, it apparently gave Funnell little pause; Jon dropped his aptly-titled debut full-length Coming of Age that same and chased it with the following January’s “Late Night”, which has since acquired a quarter million streams on Spotify alone. Now, after six years of gigging around town, Jon Funnell’s teamed up once again with Victor Gaspar of Orb Recording Studios to produce his finest-polished piece of work to date.
For someone whose tastes were still developing when Demon Days first dropped, you can instantly hear the Gorillaz influence on Funnell’s latest single, “BREAKAWAY” that dropped earlier this week. Between water smooth synths, airtight drums, and Damon Albarn-esque vocals that recall an East Austin nighttime extravaganza that sandwich a super catchy chorus all in two-and-a-half minutes flat, yeah…”BREAKAWAY” may just end up being Jon Funnell’s breakout.
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