S.P., by Dick Stusso

S.P.

by Dick Stusso

supported by

Brian This song slaps! It's been stuck in my head all week. Favorite track: Rocking Machine.

more...

	/

Streaming + Download

Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.

Purchasable with gift card

$10 USD or more
Record/Vinyl + Digital Album
A copy of "S.P." on color vinyl.

Includes unlimited streaming of S.P. via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.

ships out within 3 days

Purchasable with gift card

$23 USD or more

1.	Rocking Machine 02:20	info	buy track
2.	Part-time Apocalypse 01:16	info	buy track
3.	The Check In 01:32	info	buy track
4.	Convenient Life 01:21	info	buy track
5.	Garbagedump #1 02:15 video	info	buy track
6.	A Fairly Normal Guy 01:16	info	buy track
7.	Dinner For Two 01:38 video	info	buy track
8.	The Masterwork 02:01	info	buy track
9.	Self Reflection (Deep) 02:52 video	info	buy track
10.	Big Money 02:28	info	buy track
11.	Haunted Hotel 01:32	info	buy track
12.	Checking Back 02:09	info	buy track
13.	How Do You Spell Success? 02:16	info	buy track
14.	Doubt 01:09	info	buy track
15.	Failure 00:40	info	buy track
16.	Hell 02:11	info	buy track
17.	Twilight At The Shareholders' Meeting 01:42	info	buy track
18.	Tears Of Love 02:12	info	buy track

about

Dick Stusso is a mess. The third album from everyone’s favorite increasingly unhinged rock phenom is a document of slow, full mental unraveling in a money-chasing saga set with a world in perpetual decay as its backdrop. With S.P., the man behind the Dick Stusso persona (specifically, California-based singer and songwriter Nic Russo, who is doing much better than his fictional counterpart) has created his most out-there and toothsome record to date, plunging his listeners into a world that might seem strange—that is, until they take a look at what’s actually around them too.

S.P. is the first Dick Stusso record in four years, following his stellar Hardly Art debut In Heaven from 2018—but this latest missive is more of an indirect sequel to the buzz-building 2015 release Nashville Dreams / Sings the Blues, diving deeper into Dick Stusso’s crumbling psyche and dystopian surroundings. If our introduction to Dick was someone trying to pursue their dreams and turning into a failure as a result, S.P. reflects the moment where, in Russo’s words, “The character is becoming unlikable. He’s succumbing to what is taking place around him.”

The wild-eyed sounds on S.P.—spanning countrified rock duets, Guided by Voices-recalling anthems, and outro noise-burst sound experiments—are partially owed to the record’s protracted gestational period. Nearly half of its 18 songs were completed before the pandemic, when Russo decided to take a beat and allow the music to sprout new, weird buds in his rehearsal space. “I took my time and let these songs get as strange as they could be,” he explains, and after he completed the self-recording process, boards man and pal Andrew Oswald came in to mix down the record’s unique feel.

The result is a record that bridges the gap between the ultra lo-fi confines of Nashville Dreams and the lush echoes of In Heaven, with a few helping hands to fully flesh out Russo’s vision. In addition to being a “major musical influence” on Russo’s creative process at large, Grace Cooper (The Sandwitches, Grace Sings Sludge) contributes vocals to “Dinner for Two” and “Self Reflection (Deep)”; elsewhere, his father Marc Russo—a Grammy-winning saxophonist and longtime member of the Doobie Brothers—lays down expert horn arrangements on “Garbagedump #1.” “During the pandemic he had more downtime at home. We had talked about doing something collaborative with horns for a while,” Russo explains. “He had the time, and he’s so far out of my caliber as a musician, so it’s very serendipitous that it could happen. He made the song very special.”

“This could be heaven, or it could be hell,” he croons over the song’s barroom sway, and that opening line picks up In Heaven’s titular thread while introducing the uncertainty hovering over S.P. “Things are great, but they’re also awful at the same time,” Russo explains while talking about the overall vibe. The haunted ballad “A Fairly Normal Guy” captures our protagonist listening to music on his phone while feeling “not quite right,” while the deceptively easy going “Dinner For Two” uses darkness to mask a warm, sunny perspective right underneath.

“If we can go out and just eat some good food, maybe we can be happy,” Russo states while talking about the thematic bent of “Dinner For Two,” landing on an unexpectedly optimistic conclusion: “After accepting certain things about the way we’re living, maybe it isn’t so bad in the end.” Surprising, maybe—but S.P. is full of twists and turns like that, further establishing Russo as a fascinating craftsman who’s never bound to do the same thing twice. Would you want it any other way?

credits

license

about

Dick Stusso Oakland, California

Dicky Stuss

discography

S.P.

Mar 2023
Demoldies

Mar 2021
In Heaven

Mar 2018

contact / help

Contact Dick Stusso

Streaming and
Download help

Redeem code

Report this album or account

If you like Dick Stusso, you may also like:

Nashville Dreams/Sings The Blues
by Dick Stusso

supported by 31 fans who also own “S.P.”

Full disclosure, i'm a big fan of both Stusso's records. This one is a bit more all over the place then his latest one 'In Heaven"... This one's like a low-down garagey psych thing with a twang and nod to the blues. But it's definitely not country, the blues or psych. Maybe it's non-commital garage rock? I'm not sure, but i'm sure it's good. hodgepodgenoodlehead
go to album
Hunger for a Way Out
by Sweeping Promises

supported by 15 fans who also own “S.P.”

You had me at Kleenex/LiLiPUT meets ESG Tom
go to album
Nobody Lives Here Anymore
by Cut Worms

supported by 15 fans who also own “S.P.”

Unique sound that is not common. Had the album on repeat its that good. jason123santa
go to album
Endless Afternoon
by La Luz

Two playful outtakes from La Luz's beautiful self-titled record reveal a great rock band at the peak of their power. Bandcamp New & Notable Jun 16, 2022
go to album
La Luz
by La Luz

Indie surf sweethearts La Luz return with a sophisticated and intimate rock LP produced by Adrian Younge. Bandcamp New & Notable Aug 5, 2021
go to album
Native Sons
by Los Lobos

The latest album by the Los Angeles rock outfit showcases their varied musical influences such as zydeco, folk, R&B, and cumbia. Bandcamp New & Notable Jul 30, 2021
go to album
Texas Sun
by Khruangbin & Leon Bridges

supported by 12 fans who also own “S.P.”

the warmth . the feeling of your toes in the warm sand with a cool breeze on your face <3 Xendrikz
go to album