(October 2024) The Baby Grendel recording project was formed in 2022 by Jonathan Suarez and Joe Mengis. The band now consists of Jonathan on Rhythm Guitar and Vocals, Colleen Johnson on Keys/ Backing Vocals, Tomás Sakatani on Lead Guitar, Faith Loomis on Bass and Zach Cardenas on Drums. Their New EP Hatch(l)ing is out now.

(April 2024) The Baby Grendel EP witnesses the combined energies of Jonathan Suarez and Joe Mengis. Jonathan is an experimental artist from Salinas California, currently residing in Portland. Joe is a longtime PDX powerhouse drummer who teamed up with Jonathan in Dec 2022 to create the latest version of STSF and its offspring Baby Grendel. Their new EP Baby Grendel is out April 17 2024.

(Portland, OR March 2024) There’s blood on Jonathan Suarez’s Fender Telecaster; he still fears pain but over the past 6 years he’s learned to appreciate and respect it. If he weren’t so obstinate he mightn’t have needed it. He started his first real music project in the wake of the dissolution of a long term relationship that coincided with the death of a close family member. After a lifetime of pretending to be someone he couldn’t stand, he accepted pain along with its sister, reality, as his teachers and recorded their lessons in song.

Following a couple years of solo bedroom lofi recording under different names, he founded Small Town Sci-Fi with his friend Kimberley. They met up on weekends, jammed, got high, went for walks around the city, occasionally they’d write and record (‘Talk Down’ and the early version of ‘Psycho’). Kim eventually left the band. In the spring of 2022, Jonathan poured all of his efforts and savings into recording his first EP Psycho. Shortly after, he relocated to Portland, OR and recorded his first full album Make it Over. Drums on the album were played by Joe Mengis (Eels, Portugal. The Man), a longtime Portland musician who’d work with Jonathan to grow the project into what it is today. They changed their name to Baby Grendel and released a self titled EP in April 2024. The EP features string performances by Patti King (The Shins), and Kyle Lockwood (Climber). Recording was done at Joe’s home studio and at Jackpot! Recording Studio with Portland legend Larry Crane mixing and producing. 

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BERKELEY, CALIFORNIA (May 26, 2022) - Lo-fi indie rocker, Small Town Sci-Fi divulges the inner workings of his heart on debut EP Psycho out May 26. The California-based artist, also known as Jonathan Suarez, became interested in the world of music after a death in the family which shook Suarez to his core. Pouring his energy into song, Suarez explains that this EP was his chance to “be honest with myself and to the people who might listen. I wanted to discuss things as they really were and not how I wanted them to be.” His 4-track EP spans almost all stages of grief with heart wrenching candor and admirable vulnerability. Like an edgier version of Sufjan Stevens’ Carrie & Lowell, Suarez balances deep pain with moments of illuminating introspection. 

Placing listeners right into the crux of the wound, the EP’s opening track, “Methadone,” reflects a version of Suarez in tormented agony as he sings “it’s like my respiratory cavity’s been gutted out. Burn me down, cut me out, watch me drown - I'm hollowed out.” Careful not to portray a false sense of hope, Suarez ends the EP with “Escape Velocity,” a track which plays with the idea of escapism. “Sit back and watch while I lose my mind,” he sings. With visceral imagery and evocative language, Suarez is able to draw out an authentic sense of tragedy. This palpable loss is felt throughout Psycho as the record’s title track displays a desperation for his loved one to hold on a little longer and “Twelve Bulls” reflects the sense of anger which loss brings. “I had this image of a person I was going to be at this point,” he explains. “I thought I'd be mentally healthy, happy, and I thought I'd be a good person. It felt like I came to a kind of crossroads where I could choose either to commit to trying to deceive myself and the people around me, or to start being honest.” Even if Suarez hasn’t found acceptance, he’s most definitely found the courage to be honest.