If you’ve ever howled with laughter at classic Simpsons episodes like “Homer the Great”, “Radioactive Man”, or the very first “Treehouse of Horror”, you’ve got John Swartzwelder to thank.
The man labelled “Sage of The Simpsons” by The New Yorker was responsible for 59 of the animated sitcom’s finest episodes, and his reclusive habits helped to create a mysterious aura around him and his work.
Steel City punks Jacob are such big fans of Swartzwelder that they devoted their latest single to him.
“Hospital”, an infectious slice of 00s-influenced pop-punk that sounds like it belongs on the Malcolm in the Middle soundtrack, pays tribute to the Simpsons comedy writer.
“The lyrics mostly make reference to the life of John Swartzwelder… although I did take a few creative liberties here and there,” the band’s Ruairi Burns says.
“But most of his life is a mystery anyway, so who is to say that this song isn’t 100% factually accurate? By most accounts, he did in fact build a diner in the forest and write a sitcom filled with cowboys. I just don’t think he’s as reclusive as this song makes out.”
Burns – a great surname for someone making a song inspired by The Simpsons – even tried to channel some of Swartzwelder in the actual lyrics.
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“The lyrics, “it might be hard to follow, because they don’t have props or costumes or a camera,” to me, is very Swartzeld-ian,” he claims. “And that kind of absurdist logic turns up in a lot of spots on this album, which came directly from writing this song.
Check out “Homer the Great”:
“Hospital”, which features on Jacob’s upcoming third album, The Rock Band, fizzes with energy, zipping along at breakneck speed, which was the result of the band’s recording process.
“Jamie (Manny) wrote the first version,” Burns reveals. “It only needed a couple of tweaks from the first demo until it reached the point where we all thought it was finished.
“Although it’s one of the more simple songs on the album, we all loved playing it whenever we went away to write the album. So, it never left our minds, it’s just super fun.”
Jacob’s “Hospital” is out now. The Rock Band is out August 18th via Resist Records (pre-save/pre-order here).
