Homer Marrs takes us into his ‘Fantastic Nightmare’
LGBTQ singer-songwriter Homer Marrs releases new song “This Fantastic Nightmare” on March 11th, and surrounds himself with surprising artists!
Featured on the cover of the September issue of Bear World Magazine, Homer Marrs will release his new song, “This Fantastic Nightmare,” in just a few weeks. The song plays like an alt-rock fever dream in which Dave Grohl believes he’s Evan Dando. Jangly and angry, it uses catchy melodies and ever-present harmony to bely its aggressive root.
The song started as a true exercise in sublimation: taking an unpleasant emotion or event and channeling it into a socially acceptable output (sweet, sweet music). But as tends to be the case with artists on their journeys, catharsis gave way to self-reflection and psychic growth, resulting in a song more healing than vitriolic.
It was recorded and engineered by Ray Garrison at Electric Rooster Studios, who worked with Homer on his two previous releases, “Ben” and his acoustic cover of Danzig’s “Sistinas.” The working title was “Ain’t It a Shame,” after the Lead Belly song Nirvana once covered.
“I really miss the authenticity of the early ’90s alternative rock movement, ” says Homer. I’d love to see more modern examples of that: psychologically exploratory lyrics over organic drum/bass/guitar arrangements that leave you with an impression of a feeling but not an exact transference of one. This song is my attempt at that.”
An established figure in the LGBTQ community, Homer Marrs always has his way of surprising us and the artists he surrounds himself with: The new “purple” series of photos that Homer Marrs unveils for the occasion of his new song release was captured by the multi-award-winning photographer Johan Hesselgren (MTV, Rolling Stone Magazine, BBC, Sony Pictures, AMC, Cartoon Network…), also an accomplished creative director, producer and film director.
The artwork for the single was drawn by Sina Grace, an illustrator and writer who has worked with Tegan and Sara, Childish Gambino, Cat Stevens, Jenny Lewis, and Metric, and written for comics including Wonder Woman. His newest book, Rockstar and Softboy, releases Feb. 23 from Image Comics.
Homer Marrs was discovered nationwide for his live performance of “The Facebook Song” on “Jimmy Kimmel Live” in support of the first National UnFriend Day. The Los Angeles–based indie rock musician is back, after the success of his song “Happy Pride from the End of the World”, hitting #8 on the LGBTQ Music Chart, his cover of Danzig’s “Sistinas” that stayed 12 weeks on the AltQ Radio Top 20, reaching #1 in August 2021, and the release of his single “Ben” in September 2021. “Ben” also went to #1 on the AltQ Radio chart as well as the top ten of the LGBTQ Music Chart and Q32 Music Chart, and was in the AltQ and Bear World Top 10s of 2021.
Homer Marrs’ quirky, seriocomic lyrics and gay flair also come from other talents of his own: He was a touring comedian who performed sketch and improv comedy with Chicago’s Second City before he became a musician. In December he walked the runway for plus-size men’s fashion label House of 1912 in Austin, Texas.
