For his first in a new series of singles, Johnny Stachela has issued “Sun Is Going Down,” on all digital streaming platforms. The funk-laden track, replete with Stachela’s trademark slide guitar punctuation, is a serendipitous fusion of the guitarist’s more robust 1990s touchstones. “It was never a conscious thought but I guess you could say it weaves together elements of Hill Country Blues with the spirit of Alice In Chains,” says Stachela. “The thing about coming of age in the ‘90s is that music was evolving at a breakneck pace. It was so diverse and there was so much angst.”

Recorded at his Southern California home, Stachela embraced the down-to-the-seeds, analog approach. “I miss the time when you went into the garage and played music with your friends just for the love of it. I feel like that is the key thing missing in today’s musical landscape. There is no structure to develop an original sound anymore, so everything starts sounding the same and very little cuts through. I wanted this to cut through, and I believe it does, undeniably.” says Stachela.

On a break from his touring schedule with Duane Betts & Palmetto Motel, as well as his role as a charter member of The Allman Betts Band, the singer-songwriter/guitarist built “Sun Is Going Down” bolt-by-bolt. From the foundational drum track to the fuzzy guitar to the blues-drenched vocal, Stachela composed the raw, impassioned cut. He then reached out to friend, Jorgen Carlsson, for some low-end magic. The former Gov’t Mule bassist not only provided his thunder, he also suggested mixing the song at his home studio.

The result is an electrified power trio generating the atmospheric discharge of another time and place, all coated in analog bliss. “It’s that human quality, saturated into the tape, that I love the most. The process insists that I have to commit to what I’m playing instead of overthinking it,” says Stachela.

“Sun Is Going Down” will kick-off a forthcoming series of singles over the next several months from Stachela, akin to his 2025 batch of releases that eventually comprised The Stroll EP. Additionally, Stachela will continue his summer tour with Duane Betts & Palmetto Motel. That ensemble is supporting Betts’ latest LP, Isle of Hope, for which Stachela is a prominent contributor.