Justin Osb… Read Full Bio ↴Susto is an American indie-rock band based in Charleston.
Justin Osborne needed a break. He'd been writing music and making albums since he was 15, and by the age of 26, he felt like he was spinning his wheels. He knew he needed a change, so he ended his old band Sequoyah Prep School and moved to Cuba. He thought he might be done with music for a while, but the songs just kept coming.
"I had this idea in my mind that I was going to try and join some kind of Latin American Leftist movement. I wanted to jump off a cliff," Osborne says. "Once I got there I immediately started hanging out with musicians and going to shows. I started showing them the songs from this project that was kind of just an idea in my head.
"They were like, 'man, don't throw away your passport, go home and continue to make music,'" he says. "I was encouraged by them to try again."
Osborne was already writing the songs for what would be SUSTO's 2014 self-titled debut when his producer Wolfgang Zimmerman introduced him to Johnny Delaware, a guitarist and songwriter who had moved to Charleston, South Carolina to make an album with the producer.
SUSTO is a Spanish word referring to a folk illness in Latin America that Osborne learned as anthropology student, meaning “when your soul is separated from your body,” and also roughly translates to a panic attack. For Osborne, the music of SUSTO was something he had to get out into the world.
SUSTO released their debut album independently and toured relentlessly to get the word out. They were an immediate hit in their hometown, packing venues, getting airplay at all the bars and even making a fan of Band of Horses' Ben Bridwell. "I got an e-mail from him, telling me he loved the record and wanted to meet with me and Johnny," he says. "That was actually the day I wrote my professor, and I said, ‘I'm not coming in.’"
The members of the live band that Osborne and Delaware recruited — Corey Campbell (guitar, keys, backing vocals), Jenna Desmond (bass), and Marshall Hudson (drums, percussion) contributed to SUSTO’s new album & I'm Fine Today, which will be released via Caroline. "We just wanted to go further. We started something with the first record, and we want to keep going in that direction," Osborne says of the album, which finds them taking the spacey country rock of their debut into the stratosphere, piling on layers of sighing keyboards, galloping rhythms and frayed, noisy guitar solos atop wistful melodies and lyrics that examine growing up and growing into yourself. “We put the first record out, and we worked hard, and it just feels like a good place to be,” he says, noting that while the first record focused on his own struggles, & I'm Fine Today is more concerned with looking at the world beyond the struggles in your head.
“I’ve learned to appreciate the fact that I just get to be here. It’s all perspective,” he says. “This album is about coming to terms with yourself and feeling okay with your place in the universe."
Smoking Outside
Susto Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Black leather pants on, its a tuesday night for rock and roll.
And I tell her all the time, we can rock and roll any day.
Yeah I tell her all the time, "lets keep it to once a day." She says "
This is a great song, I love you right now, it feels better out here than it did inside.
She's softly learning to sing, its a tuesday night for rock and roll.
She's a hieroglyph on guitar strings, a tuesday night for rock and roll.
The lyrics of "Smoking Outside" by Susto describe a scene of two people smoking outside on a Tuesday night, while the theme of the song suggests that the simplicity and pleasure of rock and roll allows them to escape from the mundanity of life. The singer, identified as the singer, tells Ashley that they should save the special feeling of rock and roll for once a day. The singer feels a sense of freedom with Ashley and they both seem to be lost in the moment. The song nuances the idea of living in the present and enjoying the simple pleasures of life, such as good music and good company.
"Smoking Outside" is descriptive in its portrayal of Ashley, who the singer watches playing guitar and softly singing. The line "She's a hieroglyph on guitar strings" is suggestive of the beauty of art and the skilled language of music, where Ashley represents a symbol that attaches meaning to the words and sounds sung. The song is a call to enjoy the simplicity of life, with Ashley being the embodiment of rock and roll, both free and full of life.
Line by Line Meaning
Ashley's smoking a bong, its a tuesday night for Rock and Roll.
Ashley is smoking marijuana from a bong on a Tuesday night, which is a common night for enjoying rock and roll music.
Black leather pants on, its a tuesday night for rock and roll.
Ashley is wearing black leather pants which is a typical fashion choice for a rock and roll party on a Tuesday night.
And I tell her all the time, we can rock and roll any day.
The singer tells Ashley that they can enjoy rock and roll music any day, not just on a Tuesday night.
Yeah I tell her all the time, "lets keep it to once a day." She says "
While encouraging Ashley to enjoy rock and roll music any day, the artist also warns her to not overdo it and only enjoy it once a day. Ashley responds positively to this advice.
This is a great song, I love you right now, it feels better out here than it did inside.
Ashley expresses her love for the song and the moment. She finds it more enjoyable to be outside than inside, possibly due to the fresh air and free spirit of the night.
She's softly learning to sing, its a tuesday night for rock and roll.
Ashley is practicing her singing skills in a calm and gentle manner, fitting with the vibe of a Tuesday night rock and roll party.
She's a hieroglyph on guitar strings, a tuesday night for rock and roll.
Ashley is skilled in playing the guitar like an ancient writing system, in a way that suits the atmosphere of a Tuesday night rock and roll party.
Contributed by Sebastian A. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@colebeck8952
Man i just love this song. such a great mellow jam. never gets old. any time anywhere this song can come on and I'm just like.. its a tuesdayy niight for rock n rollll...
@elliottlyden9831
Shit is a jam man I just love getting home turning on this tune in the garage and smoking a bowl off the bong. The end of this song will have me slow dancing with a ghost and loving it
@productioncorp
Ear.....
@pmc1649
Great Song
@Melgozaa404
Thank you Spotify for your “Discover Weekly” playlist.
@jake4572
One of the best
@badwolfstudio6799
She's softly learning to sing....
@smithwilliams8831
Kind of has a Polaris vibe. Which is definitely a good thing
@joshuecevallos3942
I liked :V
@martinbachleda5393
The lizard will win.