Sam the Astronaut
Growing up together in Vancouver, Garrison Johnson and TJ Gibson took some time to partner up. However, good things clearly come to those who wait; together, they make up Sam the Astronaut, indie’s next big thing. When you combine Johnson’s rich voice with Gibson’s top tier production skills, magic comes to be. With over 2.6 million Spotify streams and spots on 4 Spotify-curated playlists, the duo blends hip hop, disco, pop, and all things electric. Writing and self-producing their debut album, 2017’s Girls of Summer, Johnson and Gibson just released their much anticipated 2020 EP, “High for You.” Filled with everything from upbeat pop (“Monster High (Love So Crazy)”) to slower, deeper tracks (“Midnight Carlight”), its success is imminent. We recently spoke with Garrison and TJ about how they got their started, their time off, and more!
How did you guys start making music?
Our first session together was vocals for a track waves back in 2015. After that it just snowballed, We liked how waves turned out. So we kept showing each other new songs we had and we eventually made girls of summer. Which was a really fun record to make. No budget, no production experience, Teej just had one synth at the time.
It’s your day off: How are you spending it?
TJ: If it’s a day off from music. I’m hanging out with my friends. I’m in absolute love with my friends and they’re the best people I know. So anything with them. Mostly it’s outside stuff. And lots of dinners together.
Garrison: Having a coffee, going for a walk, working on some music, and maybe watching a movie.
What was the last song each of you listened to?
Garrison: “Intergalactic” - Beastie Boys
TJ: “Reborn” - Kids See Ghosts
What's the best part about being a duo?
Less gear to carry into gigs. Nah haha we love each other. And we’re definitely not afraid to fail in front of each other. Which is important for growth as an artist. We push each other constantly out of our own boundaries. In a way it’s kinda like a marriage haha. It’s emotional as heck! Though, any band with any number of members can have that. So we go back to the original answer. Less gear to carry.
With every artist at your disposal, who’s your choice for a dream collab?
TJ: That’s so tough. Alive… ye. Politics and Ideologies aside. His music and production has done so much for me and if I got the chance to work with him. Just to stand in a studio with him. I don’t know, that would be a huge moment for me. He’s helped me out a lot. Now any artist to ever live… I think Freddie Mercury. Obviously just an amazing artist. But there’s so many questions I want to ask him about life. My dream artist collaboration would be having a conversation with Freddie just about life and love. Then we could record something after haha
Garrison: Daft Punk would be incredible.
Which song is your most personal? Can you explain to us its significance?
Garrison: A new song that’s on the upcoming album — “Blue and Pink”. Because it lyrically captures the feeling of manipulation and control in relationships. The song also parallels with drug abuse and the struggles of being with someone dealing with it.
TJ: It kinda changes day to day to be honest. But if I tried to just choose one song… I think the ending song of the track “Girls of Summer” The song with the acoustic “You look so good in your long blonde hair…” that one. I had come out of this long relationship, With a girl from New Zealand. She had this road sign by her place, That pointed to famous cities around the world. One sign pointed to Vancouver, 7000km away. That relationship changed my life for the better and she changed my life for the better! I’m just really happy me and g were able to put down in song, how important she was to me.
Any future projects for fans to get excited about?
We got so much coming… We’ve been pretty much heads down working on this upcoming album for about 4 years. Still independent, still mainly in the bedroom studio. We’re extremely excited to share it. These songs mean the absolute world to us and we’re proud of the production. It’s a very 80’s foundation but branches out all over the place. Inspired by Prince, Michael Jackson, Bleachers, Tame Impala, MGMT, Pomo, A lot of different artist haha. August 28th it comes out. It’s titled Midnight Carlight. Other than that, We’re day dreaming of playing live again. We miss it so much.
