On April 15th, 2018, my oldest friend Rob Schultze suffered an aortic dissection, causing a rupture in his aorta down the left side of his body, from his heart to his leg. Rob spent over seven weeks in the hospital and underwent numerous surgeries as a result.
Rob is doing well now, but recovery is expensive. In an effort to provide some amount of financial relief from medical expenses, I am releasing new music for the first time since 2012.
The first of three releases will be available Friday, November 23rd, with the second and third each following after, one week apart. All proceeds (minus Bandcamp’s cut) go directly toward Rob Schultze’s medical expenses.
If you would like to learn more, I’ve shared below. I hope you’ll consider contributing to this cause by purchasing one or more at whatever price you would like.
Release Details
John Praw – Necromancy
CLICK HERE TO STREAM OR PURCHASE
Release Date: Friday, November 23rd, 2018
Necromancy is an EP of ambient music recorded in the first two weeks following Rob’s emergency heart surgery. This EP explores the uncertainty of life, in uneasy cycles. Necromancy was composed with acoustic guitar, synthesizer and vocals.
Original cover image taken by Kari Jahnke. Cover version captured by Rob Schultze. Pictured: Rob Schultze (left), John “Praw” Kruse (center), Josh Jahnke (right).
John Praw – Scions of Light and Darkness
CLICK HERE TO STREAM OR PURCHASE
Release Date: Friday, November 30th, 2018
Full-length drone album recorded mostly over the course of one month in 2017. Scions of Light and Darkness was my attempt at pursuing drone ideas from early in my time making experimental music, but with the tools and skills available to me a decade later. This album was composed entirely with synthesizer and vocals.
John Praw – JP2
CLICK HERE TO STREAM OR PURCHASE
Release Date: Friday, December 7th, 2018
JP2 is an album of collected material spanning 2012-2018. Like my 2011 self-titled John Praw album before it, JP2 represents a distillation of my creative output over the course of several years. Recorded via various methods including synthesizer, vocals, Qchord, vocoder, field recordings, chopped samples, etc.
. . .
But wait, there’s more!
While Necromancy, Scions of Light and Darkness, and JP2 are all being released under the name-your-price model, I would like to offer an additional thank-you for your contribution. From release through the month of January, those who choose to participate in my fundraising efforts will receive the following bonuses:
With any purchase of $1 or more…
You will receive an additional collection of unreleased tracks, demos, live recordings, sketches, contributed pieces and more.
With any purchase of $5 or more…
You will receive the collection of unreleased material mentioned above, plus as·sort·ed dem·o·li·tions, an unreleased compilation of electronic songs recorded under the moniker Dressed Up. Produced primarily 2011-2013, this crunchy, beat-based project started back in the Myspace/what.cd witch-house scene days as Δressed Up Like Δogs.
With any purchase of $10 or more…
You will receive all of the above, plus all currently-available John Praw releases on Bandcamp, including:
John Praw (March 8th, 2011)
John Praw: Bonus Dronus (March 8th, 2011)
Fireworks (July 5th, 2011)
Four Twenty Twenty Twelve (April 20th, 2012)
And to top it all off, you will also receive downloads of three no-longer-available EPs:
BW (September 27th, 2011)
Gate (June 8th, 2010 – split w/ I Am The Architect)
Split Continents (May 25th, 2010 – split w/ Darkslider)
Posted April 17th, 2018:
Thinking of Rob tonight.
The first “band” I was ever in was with Rob. We were called Ludlowe the Coyote, and we were not good. But it was fun, as always, to create something with a friend – truly, my oldest friend. We somehow convinced Screamin’ Cyn Cyn & the Pons to play with us at our first and only show, in my parents’ basement in Oconto Falls, while they were away in New York.
Rob got drunk that night and wandered off. Eventually, a cop picked him up after he fell asleep under a slide at the park down the street. The cop more or less tricked Rob into leading the way back to my parents’ house. They pushed a couple kids around, and gave me a sizeable ticket not for drinking, but for refusing to call the cops on my underage friends who were. Thank you to Josh Jahnke for helping pay that, by the way.
It was a lot of fun, and I would absolutely encourage all kids everywhere to host a kickass show in your parents’ basement. (I am not a lawyer.)
Now, I sit at my computer for the second night in a row, knowing that Rob is still sedated after emergency heart surgery. If we’re lucky, we’re a only a third of the way through life. If we’re average, just under half. Rob is in a hospital on the other side of the country with his chest cracked open, and I – along with many other people who love him – am unable to help.
I’ve never liked the term “best friend,” because to me, it implies you have to choose someone. I often feel like I’m alone, but I remember that I am fortunate to call a handful of people “best friends.” If anyone’s on that list, Rob is, and it feels good to know how many other people I know 100%, without a doubt, have Rob on theirs.
We can’t wait to see you again, buddy. Come back soon.
John Praw 