J.D. Reager is a songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and audio engineer based in Memphis, TN. He is a former musical contributor with several critically acclaimed recording/touring artists, including Glossary, Pezz, Snowglobe and the Passport Again. J.D. also currently plays guitar with Memphis indie-pop mainstays Two Way Radio, who are featured in the upcoming Craig Brewer-directed web series “$5 Cover,†and is a co-owner of Makeshift Music, a well respected collective/independent label in Memphis.
As a songwriter, J.D. is hard to pigeon-hole. Lyrically, his songs are honest and very personal, with healthy doses of irony and self-deprecation mixed in. Musically, J.D. ranges from solo, acoustic balladry to full-blown, fuzzed-out psychedelic rock (sometimes within the same song), with stops at points in-between. Frequent comparisons to Sebadoh and Elephant 6 are not without their merit.
J.D. Reager’s long-awaited and oft-discussed solo album, The Repechage, was released this year (2009) by Makeshift Music and the Knoxville-based Migrant Records. The record features guest appearances by members of Snowglobe, Lucero, the Subteens, Giant Bear, and a host of other well known Memphis musicians.
Select discography:
J.D. Reager The Repechage (Makeshift Music/Migrant Records) 2009
Two Way Radio P.D. Pockets' Rescue (Electraphonic) 2009 - guitar, vocals, mellotron
Hunter & the Unclaimed Band Project Against the New American Nightmare (RevPower, 2007) - engineer, drums, guitars, piano, fuzz bass, lap steel, backing vocals
Jeffrey James & the Haul Win the National Championship (Makeshift, 2006) - engineer
Glossary For What I Don't Become (Undertow, 2006) - drums, piano, backing vocals
Holly Fearless and Free (Makeshift, 2006) - producer/engineer, guitar, drums, bass, piano, organ, synths
Snowglobe Oxytocin (Makeshift, 2006) - drums, guitar, backing vocals
the Coach and Four the Great Escape (Makeshift, 2006) - engineer
Two Way Radio (formerly Walkie Talkie) Residential Llama (Makeshift, 2006) - engineer
Camren Von Davis Bobby Barbados (Radford Review, 2006) - engineer, drums, organ, the voice of Walter Scott
Imagination Head the Stale and Sparkly Air (Makeshift, 2006) - engineer, drums, guitar, backing vocals
the Noise Choir Sings Out (2005) - engineer
the Passport Again Hold on to the Memory E.P. (Migrant/Makeshift, 2004) - producer/engineer, drums, guitar, bass, vocals, piano
Glossary Dear Friends and Gentle Hearts (Champ, 2003) - drums
Johnny Romania Popchaser (Extant, 2000) - engineer, guitar, vocals, bass, synths, drums
Pezz Warmth and Sincerity (Better Youth Organization, 1999) - bass
the Henrys s/t (Rockingchair, 1997) - drums, guitar, vocals
