Mottled Moth

Sweet Understanding

Sweet Understanding is a 6 song EP I worked on for most of 2024. My inspiration for this one sonically was split between the guitar work of The War on Drugs and the synth excellence of Phil Collins. The songs are about navigating midlife with consistency, dealing with friendships which change over time, and building a good marriage.

The title comes from a passage in Steinbeck’s East of Eden. Protagonist Adam Trask discusses the tradeoffs between achieving greatness or having a simpler life and rewarding relationships with his friend Samuel, the moral compass of the novel.

“It’s because I haven’t courage,’ said Samuel. ‘I could never quite take the responsibility. When the Lord God did not call my name, I might have called his name - but I did not. There you have the difference between greatness and mediocrity. It’s not an uncommon disease. But it’s nice for a mediocre man to know that greatness must be the loneliest state in the world.’

‘I’d think there are degrees of greatness,’ Adam said.

‘I don’t think so,’ said Samuel. ‘That would be like saying there is a little bigness. No. I believe when you come to that responsibility the hugeness and you are alone to make your choice. On one side you have warmth and companionship and sweet understanding, and on the other - cold, lonely greatness. There you make your choice. I’m glad I chose mediocrity, but how am I to say what reward might have come with the other? None of my children will be great either, except perhaps Tom. He’s suffering over the choosing right now. It’s a painful thing to watch. And somewhere in me I want him to say yes. Isn’t that strange? A father to want his son condemned to greatness! What selfishness that must be.”

One of the songs is a Green Day cover. The song is Pulling Teeth, my favorite cut from 1994’s Dookie. I recorded this one for fun in honor of Dookie’s 30th anniversary, and ended up enjoying it enough to put it on the record.

Released December 20, 2024.