Djo - The Crux
A common misconception about artists whether they be musicians, painters, writers, directors, or actors seems to be that their only medium of creative expression is the one that put them on the map but that is the furthest thing from true for most folks. Creativity has no limits, that’s what makes it creative, and you’d be surprised to find how many actors sing in their off time or how many dancers paint to unwind.
Take Joe Keery, for instance. Long before he became the face of Steve “The Hair” Harrington on Netflix’s Stranger Things, Keery was another kid from Chicago with a dream and passion for music. In 2014, he and some friends founded Post Animal, a psych rock band where he contributed vocals and guitar work. After parting from the band in 2019 to focus on his budding acting career, Kerry’s days with music appeared to be up in the air but in that same year, someone by the name of Djo released a debut album that mixed sounds of the past with the present. Listeners would come to find that this Djo character was actually a moniker for Keery and his solo work, essentially just a cheeky play on the simplicity that is his first name, Joe.
During the six years that followed that debut album, Twenty Twenty, Keery grew significantly both in acting and music. Now that 2025 is really kicking off with the final chapter of Stranger Things due to hit in the late Fall, Keery has released a new album under Djo by the name of The Crux.
The Crux is a bright, thematic collection of works that undoubtedly belong in this time of year, Spring, where everything gray begins to bloom and grow into its own, beautiful rhythm. It’s coming of age ambience drives Djo’s initial motif of faith and holding love for the world and its people despite personal bumps and mishaps. The Crux truly embodies the saying “I know love exists because I exist and I am full of it” from the opening track to the closing piano medley.
Lonesome is a State of Mind starts out The Crux. It isn’t an in-your-face and amped up beginning but rather a fluid, gentle start. The song begins with softened features from the tone to the lyrics but it spins itself on its head around halfway through by presenting hard-hitting instrumentals and newer life that’s breathed into the initial melancholy. Its incorporation of “fantasy” sounds you’d expect to find in music accompanying picturesque scenes with castles, fairies, dragons, and royalty is a very refreshing addition much in thanks to the varied synth and flutes, which luckily remain consistent throughout the rest of the album without appearing redundant.
Further down the album after the reflective, upbeat, and evolving journey that make up tracks 2 through 5 is Egg. At first glance, I laughed because of the comically vague title. I mean, come on: how can something called Egg be profound or resonating in any way, shape, or form? Djo really made a fool of me with this one, however, because Egg absolutely knocked my socks off.
The song details feelings of insecurity and personal anxieties with constant questions that exude internal angst such as “don’t you wish you could be somebody else?” and “you just gonna let fear take that?” It also outlines Djo’s desire to be successful while also keeping a good heart in his chest, pointing out how much pressure that can be through the lines “Can one be great? Can one be kind? When history shows, they’re not intertwined. So what will you choose, your heart or your pride?” The instrumentals add a perfectly balanced cinematic depth to the already esoteric word play Djo has going for him, which has Egg standing out as a dominating force in The Crux.
Two other songs worth noting off of The Crux are Charlie’s Garden and Gap Tooth Smile. Both are very different in style and theme but they pose as crucial elements of Djo’s overall manner and attitude as an artist, especially in this new chapter.
Charlie’s Garden, in a nutshell, is utterly fun. It is uncanny to The Beatles, specifically the Abbey Road era. It’s bubbly, prim, playful, and proves that good music didn’t all die with the 20th century. In terms of meaning, the song is an homage to Djo’s good friend and Stranger Things co-star Charlie Heaton, who is actually featured speaking on the track in a faux voicemail clip. The song commemorates the pair’s friendship, comparing Charlie’s brotherhood with Joe to a garden that is peaceful and takes away the stress of daily reality just as a good connection should.
Gap Tooth Smile, in contrast to Charlie’s Garden, is a rock n roll ified number that serves as a blunt love song for a mystery girl. As someone with imperfect teeth myself, it was joyful to listen to Djo as he poured his heart and soul into these lyrics dedicated to someone he loves so much with imperfections of their own. He repeatedly hypes her up and recounts how cool and good hearted this unnamed woman is, even going as far to reference Queen and the great Freddie Mercury with “Freddie said it right, she’s my killer queen”. He spins it all back to that perfectly flawed smile, stating “it’s her hair, her style, but I fell in love with her gap tooth smile”.
Overall, The Crux is a powerful record that radiates with light and a refreshing newness that we haven’t heard in pop music for quite some time. Djo brilliantly combines older inspirations (The Beatles, Electric Light Orchestra, Crowded House, etc.) with new, raw ideas that translate extremely well. Its ideas of self reflection, friendship, love, and growing up present themselves clearly and I cannot wait to see what else is in store for Joe Keery or, Djo.
After the release of The Crux, Djo is currently on tour with his old band, Post Animal, opening for him. He will play cities such as Denver, Detroit, Brooklyn, London, Berlin, and more across the globe along with a handful of sets at varied festivals.