If you know anything about me, it’s that I absolutely love writing about how live music can be a bridge to connection and be used as a tool to create communities with people you may not ever have another chance to meet. And that’s basically Make Out Music‘s mission statement: “Showcasing up-and-coming artists and giving them a comfortable, intimate platform to connect with people who love music.”
I’ve been familiar with Make Out Music for a few years now, but haven’t had a chance to check out one of their shows until last week: ironically, just a couple days after I discovered Jack Rabbit‘s music for the first time. Say what you want about Spotify and other streaming conglomerates: all opinions on how they’re royally screwing over artists financially are 10000% valid. But Spotify also put Jack Rabbit’s new album, A Sensitive Subject, right on my home page as suggested listening, so I have to give Spotify props where it’s necessary.
Jack Rabbit, comprised of friends and collaborators Morgan Donegan and Andy Leon-Ramos, create music that “sits at the intersection of indie, folk, and pop” with roots stretching from Texas and Mexico (several of their songs are bilingual). Leon-Ramos hails from Querétaro, Mexico, and Donegan from Dallas, Texas: and jack rabbits are native to both Texas and Mexico. This fun fact, combined with a rabbit’s foot being good luck, the moniker Jack Rabbit was born.
It’s not often that I’ll hear an album for the first time from an artist I was previously unaware of and instantly connect it: but that’s exactly what happened when I heard Jack Rabbit for the first time. They remind me of artists like Spill Tab, MICHELLE, and Wallice: soft melodies, airy vocals, and simple, yet effective harmonies.
Donegan and Leon-Ramos met ten years ago while studying in Boston and auditioning for “a feminist retelling of The Odyssey,” where they were assigned to harmonize together: a meet-cute for the band now, but something I’d assume was extremely anxiety-inducing for some college students. “Some sort of magic [happened] that we still can’t quite verbalize,” the duo mentions in their Substack.
Fast forward several years, states, and part-time jobs, and Jack Rabbit is still making music together, fully funding A Sensitive Subject by themselves. Weaving through songs about situationships, (literal) dreams about a wedding day that you know will never come, and feeling frisky when the sun goes down, Jack Rabbit effortlessly captures the whirlwind of emotions that come with growing up and figuring out (or struggling to) life, sexual identity, love, and everything in between.
Back to the whole “community” of it all: you could see that relationships are at the core of everything Jack Rabbit does, whether its their personal relationships to each other and the music they create, or the community they’ve curated for themselves in Los Angeles as they continue to grind as self-funded artists. Many people in the crowd this past Friday evening were family and friends: a few small children were in attendance to support their former nanny (Morgan Donegan) and wasted no time dancing and cheering along.
Nothing meaningful comes easy, and it’s easy to see that the art that Donegan and Leon-Ramos create together comes from a labor of love. Their dynamic onstage feels natural, comfortable, and easy: neither one “outperformed” the other or looked for ways to stand apart. It’s a unified front: and creating a safe environment through their music is the perfect manifestation of what Make Out Music is all about.
Jack Rabbit is headed to NYC this Friday for a performance at Bowery Electric.
Tickets are on sale HERE.
This is such a wonderful write up!! Thanks so much for coming out and supporting us, it means the world you connect to our music & mission 🥹 xoxo, Mo