WHEN I WAS A TEENAGER, I HAD A VISION IN THE DMT REALM THAT I WOULD WRITE AN ALBUM ONE DAY, CALLED “COVENANT,” AND MADE A PROMISE TO THE DIVINE, OR GOD AS SOME CALL IT, THAT I WOULD BRING IT INTO REALITY. THROUGHOUT MY ADOLESCENCE AND ADULT LIFE, I NEVER FORGOT THIS OATH. HOWEVER, IT WOULD TAKE YEARS OF PERSONAL GROWTH, PAIN, HUMILITY, AND FAILURE BEFORE I WAS ABLE TO ACCEPT THAT, WHILE I MAY HAVE DREAMT OF WHAT THE FUTURE POTENTIALLY HOLDS, THE ALBUM ITSELF WOULD NOT COME TO FRUITION UNLESS I CREATED IT MYSELF. SO I DECIDED TO MAKE MY THIRD SOLO ALBUM, AN HOUR-LONG PSYCHEDELIC JOURNEY.

EVERY NEW ALBUM IS A NEW BENCHMARK, A NEW NOTCH DRAWN IN THE WALL TO SEE HOW MUCH I’VE GROWN AS AN ARTIST. AS VAIN AS IT MAY BE, I ENJOY THE MUSIC I MAKE, AND ENCOURAGE EVERY ARTIST TO HAVE THAT AS THEIR FOUNDATION: BE PROUD OF WHAT YOU MAKE; BE YOUR BIGGEST CRITIC & BIGGEST FAN. MY GOAL WITH THIS ALBUM WAS TO LEAVE SOMETHING THAT WOULD NOT ONLY BRING ME JOY, BUT ALSO ELEVATE THE AUDIENCE AS WELL, AND TO MAKE SOMETHING THAT WOULD STILL HAVE AN IMPACT AFTER I AM LONG GONE. MUCH LIKE A PSYCHEDELIC EXPERIENCE, “COVENANT” IS DESIGNED TO TAKE YOU ON A JOURNEY, SUBMERGE YOU IN ITS DIFFERENT WORLDS OF MUSIC, AND LEAVE YOU HAPPILY OVERWHELMED.

AS THE CULTURAL PENDULUM BEGAN SWINGING IN A MOST UNEXPECTED DIRECTION A FEW YEARS AGO, MY OWN BELIEFS, FRIENDSHIPS, AND DESIRES METAMORPHOSED AND BECAME DEFINED. I BEGAN LISTENING TO VOICES I ONCE DISMISSED. AND SO I STARTED TO UNRAVEL THE PROGRAMMING I WAS INDOCTRINATED WITH AND HAD BECOME SUSCEPTIBLE TO, AND TOOK A GOOD HARD LOOK AT WHO I WAS, MY ACTIONS, WHO I’D BECOME, WHO I WANTED TO BE, AND WHAT I NEEDED TO DO TO TAKE ME THERE. MY SINS, MUCH LIKE THE TATTOOS IN MY FLESH, I’LL CARRY WITH ME FOREVER. AND AFTER SPENDING YEARS CREATING ART WITH AN IMBALANCE OF NEGATIVITY AND LOWER VIBRATIONS, I REALIZED THAT IN ORDER TO ELEVATE MY OWN CONSCIOUSNESS, I NEEDED TO ALSO ELEVATE THE MUSIC I COMPOSE. SO I DECIDED IF I WANTED TO CREATE THE MOST HONEST RECORD I COULD, THEN I WOULD NEED TO MAKE "COVENANT" COMPLETELY D.I.Y.

BUT IN ESSENCE, I DIDN’T CREATE THE ALBUM MYSELF. IT WAS ONLY THROUGH MY EXPERIENCES AND EXCHANGES WITH OTHERS THAT THE ALBUM BEGAN TO TAKE SHAPE, ONLY BY BECOMING CONSCIOUS (’AWAKE’) AND FINDING OTHERS WHOM I COULD COMMUNICATE MY FEARS & THOUGHTS TO WAS I ABLE TO DISCOVER THE ALBUM I NEEDED AND PROMISED TO MAKE. IT WAS NOT SOMETHING I COULD HAVE DONE ON MY OWN. WITHOUT THE LOVE OF GOOD PEOPLE, PARTICULARLY OVER THE PAST THREE YEARS, THROUGH DEALING WITH THE TRAUMA I BOTH DEALT & WAS DEALT, I DOUBT THAT EITHER MYSELF OR THIS ALBUM WOULD EXIST TODAY.

THANK YOU DEARLY TO THE FAMILY & FRIENDS WHO, DESPITE MY MANY FLAWS, SINS, & FAILURES, HAVE BEEN THERE WHEN I NEEDED THEM AND STILL LOVED ME FOR WHO I AM:
MY MOM, MY DAD, AND MY BROTHER RYAN. BILLY HAGOOD, WILL SIMPSON, JUSTIN GIBSON, PHILLIP KLAPP, JUDSON MOORE, PETER GRAESSLE, MICHAEL PRICE, VICTORIA ROSE, SIERRA McDONALD, JACOB WALSH, BEN & ANSLEY STUBBS, JOEY BENNETT, SAMSON BENNETT, BOBBY STRATTON, MATT GREENWELL, TEDD SCHUEBERT, WILL HART, MICHELLE SASSEEN, JONATHON JONES, AMANDA LUSK, JAMES ERIC HERNDON, RAVEN GASCOYNE, AUSTIN McLEOD, AUDREY GOODALE, CASEY O’KELLEY, KELLY KANNADY, DUSTY DORMINEY, JEREMY CRAVEN, JOEL SANTIAGO VAZQUEZ, BEAU GRIFFIS, ANDY KIRKLAND, JOSE WOLF, ALEC SEAGRAVE, TYLER MATSON, SAYER LANE, ADAM MOORE, JORDAN GANAS, ZANE ALLY, JOHN RANALLI, DANE BRADFORD, MIGUEL SARASOLA, RYAN FITTON, RODNEY READING, KELLIE INMAN, LAURA PERE, KRISTI DAZEVEDO, BLAKE CLARK, KEITH LAY, MICHAEL LORE, EVAN VOID, JASON VERDONE, ALYSSA MOECERE, DAN MARCHINI, CAROLYN LAPPS, MATTHEW ZAGORSKI, WILL X. STANLEY, KELLY BERRY, JOSEPH SANTARPIA, CHRISTIAN TORRES, RAYMOND TORRES, JOSEPH WOODS, JAIME MARIN, WILFRIDO MARTINEZ, JASON STECKMAN, BRYAN SCHRUMPF, DAVID WALJE, DANNY RODRIGUEZ, DUSTI HALL, SARAH McCOY SMITH, ANGELA MARAFINO, BREY LITTLETON, TERRY BAILEY, QUINN SILVERNALE, DREW ASPINWALL, JAKE RUBIN MILLER, IAN SHERMAN, JOSEPH HAYNES, JEREMY GRIFFIN, COURTNEY PALMER, BRITTANY EPPERSON, TIFFANY WIELAND, JOHNNY McCUTCHIN, LAUREN LEUDEMANN, CODY & KAITY WELCH, MELODY FULP LINDNER, ALEX FAULKNER, RYAN PARENT, RYAN RALEY, ALLEN NEWTON, NATASHA FAST, DARIO SANTILLAN, JAMES BACA, CALEB BROWN, JORDAN PATTON, HARRY SINNER, JASON CRAWFORD, ASHLEY JONES, CASSANDRA HIGHWATER, ELKE SCHULTZ, TIM HARVEY, CARRIE SING, NICK WENTWORTH, BRANDON ANDERSON, AND ALL OF YOUR FAMILIES. GOD BLESS YOU AND I LOVE YOU ALL. THANK YOU FOR BEING YOURSELVES AND MAKING THE WORLD A BETTER PLACE.

THANKS ALSO TO THESE INDIVIDUALS WHOM I’VE NEVER KNOWN PERSONALLY BUT HELPED SHAPE THIS ALBUM THROUGH THEIR INFLUENCE: TREY PARKER & MATT STONE, SAM TRIPOLI XG JOHNNY WOODARD & THE TIN FOIL HAT SWARM, DR. ALBERT HOFFMAN, JOE ROGAN, EDDIE BRAVO, GRAHAM HANCOCK, DAVE CHAPELLE, TERRENCE McKENNA, TIMOTHY LEARY, TYCHO BRAHE, PTOLEMY, PYTHAGORAS, ANATOLY FOMENKO, JORDAN B. PETERSON, DUNCAN TRUSSELL, CHRIS CORNELL, KIM THAYIL, BILL WITHERS, JOSH HOMME, JOHNNY WHITNEY, JORDAN BILLIE, BILLY CORGAN, ANDRE BENJAMIN, ANTWAN PATTON, MAYNARD JAMES KEENAN, ADAM JONES, LAYNE STALEY, JERRY CANTRELL, SCOTT WEILAND, OMAR RODRIGUEZ LOPEZ, CEDRIC BIXLER ZAVALA, MIKE PATTON, LES CLAYPOOL, ZACH DE LA ROCHA, FELIPE ANDRES CORONEL, ANTHONY BOURDAIN, ALEX JONES, GAD SAAD, DAVID ICKE, WHITNEY WEBB, TIM DILLON, RANDALL CARLSON, SANTOS BONACCI, ROBIN WILLIAMS, JULIAN ASSANGE, AND NIKOLA TESLA. MAY THIS ALBUM INSPIRE OTHERS, AS YOUR MINDS & CREATIONS HAVE INSPIRED ME.

THIS ALBUM IS DEDICATED TO ALL INDIVIDUALS LISTED HITHERTO, LIVING OR DEAD.