Michael Schneeweis, who releases music under the name Sadjoy, describes himself as a poor interviewee. In his dedication to answering questions honestly, he feels he contradicts himself or does not answer questions as fully as he intended to. So instead of a formal outlined interview, Schneeweis and I just talked for a little over two hours.
Schneeweis’ catalog, which goes back 18 years, paints a story of growth and transition within a talented DIY musician. From his roots in early 2000s punk music through his explorations of sobriety and Buddhism, Schneeweis’ albums vary quite a bit, but they always have a calming yet silly quality completely unique to him.
Having grown up in a home of working musicians, music has always been a driving force in Schneeweis’ life. He notes that “[Playing music] is something that my parents liked, so I might have genetically received an imprint from my bloodline where I like it.” He describes his childhood home as being filled with live music, through his father’s various bands as well as from his older brother, Patrick (Pat the Bunny), who played in punk bands since both men were teenagers. But Schneeweis has a passion for music entirely in his own right. He is self-taught on guitar, piano, bass and essentially all other instruments, noting he is always confused by questions about what he plays because “my gut answer is I play everything,” no matter the proficiency.
Schneeweis rarely listens to music but has always been drawn to composition, as he notes when working on a song, “I get so into it. It is like this amazing puzzle … It kind of drives me crazy.” Additionally, he likes to handle every aspect of the album-making process—lyrics, arrangement, recording, editing and all instrumentals: “I’ve always felt like for this album to sound how I want it, the most efficient way is for me to just do everything … the positive way of looking at that is that [I am] a multi-instrumentalist and full of ideas. The negative side is having a hard time letting go and letting people help [me].”
In recent years, music has been Schneeweis’ most consistent form of income, but he still pursues many other interests. Schneeweis, on top of working a handful of less than ideal labor jobs, has earned his Master of Divinity in Buddhism and is currently studying at a massage school. He leans towards jobs where he can help and communicate with people, be it through music, working as a chaplain or providing massage therapy.
It has only been in the last couple of years that Schneeweis began reflecting on whether music was the field he really wanted to pursue, when he noted, “In my teens, there was no question. Of course I’m going to be making music … But now I’m 31, and the energy around it is very different.” That energy, he went on to explain, applies to many aspects of his musicianship, from feeling more self-conscious as an adult about playing music loudly in his room, to experiencing what he describes as an Earthly separation from his newer music. Because his newer music was mixed on a computer and has never been played live as a result of the pandemic, Schneeweis feels this music is not “connected to the ground floor of life.” But he is hoping to go back on tour sometime this year because “the live thing keeps it real … and where I’m at musically right now is that it might be time to focus on live music a little more.”
The style of music that Sadjoy and Schneeweis’ older project Michael Jordan Touchdown Pass consist of is hard to capture. “I say it is like indie pop folky music… or at times I say, it is indie rock. Other times I would say it is pretty folk punky.” Schneeweis classifies himself somewhere within the genre of folk punk, but given how vague that genre description is, I would recommend just giving his music a listen.
When asked what album Schneeweis would recommend as an introduction to his music, he suggested listeners start with “Cash, Money” (a Michael Jordan Touchdown Pass album), which he wrote in high school and ending with his most recent album “Clouds” (a Sadjoy album), released when he was 28.
