Zach Wilson /The Falcon Junior Scott Johnson (a.k.a. “Scosh”) plays his guitar in Martin Square last Wednesday.

SPU is home to a budding community of exceptional musicians. Junior Scott P. Johnson is one of them.

Known as "Scosh" among friends, this music composition major plays an amalgamation of folk, jazz, and rock. His influences include Paul Simon, Chris Thile, Wilco, and Cake. Johnson can be seen playing lead guitar for SPU's worship band Unlimited, and he will be opening for sophomore Ryan Clodfelter and SPU alumnus Stephen Hartwell at an upcoming concert on Friday at First Free Methodist Church. He plans on recording a full-length album this summer.

On what music SPU students should be listening to:

I would say SPU students specifically should listen to Pedro the Lion...instead of Spirit 105.3, you know what I mean? Because Pedro the Lion addresses really, really tough issues with morality and what actually makes you a Christian. And he sings a lot about his doubts in Christianity and the failures of Christianity while still claiming to be a Christian, which is like a really bizarre thing for a musician to do, but he does it in such a way that...it's very moving, and you're still convinced that he's a Christian, even though he's...admitting to very intense failures in life.

And I think that's really important because...Christian societies...they tend to jump on you for doing anything that might be considered wrong or out of the Christian culture. Whereas, if we were really honest and said, "Hey, I do this, maybe I even like it, but I know it's wrong," you know, I think that's important, instead of just this fear of not fitting in with Christian culture.

On what music he was listening to at age 5:

I think I was listening to the Beatles, actually. And my dad would wake us up every morning to "Today is Your Birthday" on the "White Album." But he'd change it to "Today is a Church Day," and he'd sing it to us while it was playing. Yeah, it was pretty cool.

On choosing the path of a musician:

I think probably somewhere around senior year of high school was when I realized I had to play guitar, and I had to be involved with music somehow. And I knew that studying music would help me have the tools to be more creative because I feel like creativity is the most important part of music, for me anyway.

On what is up ahead in his music:

Well, I feel like with writing music I'm learning how to be more specific about what I'm actually trying to say in a song...without being too specific...learning how to be vague enough to keep the person interested in what the song's about, but then actually having it say something that I actually mean it to say.

And musically, I am going back to my roots on guitar, which is playing finger-style stuff so that I can basically play the songs without a band if I have to...and maybe not even need a band because I have all the parts going on at one time. I definitely see myself moving in a more acoustic direction, I guess. I play only electric [guitar] in Unlimited, but acoustic is what I really like.

On how to get serious about becoming a musician:

I would say anyone seriously considering at least being creative in the music world, they should read Rainer Maria Rilke's "Letters to a Young Poet," which is basically letters about how to write poetry, but it translates really well into how to write music. It's really, really interesting.

Is the "indie" genre dead?

Honestly...I just listen to music. I don't really get into the politics of it very much. So, indie music is just music without a producer, like independent. I think that's probably the best way to do it, and I don't know if its dead, I don't know. But I think the actual meaning..."independent of a label"...I don't think that's dead. That's what I'm going to do this summer, just record with a friend.

Favorite Beatle:

That's a really tough question, because I could go with Ringo, just because, if you watch the Beatles movies, he's always the funniest one because he's so laid-back, and his accent is hilarious. But I also like George a lot, because he doesn't really ever say anything, and he's got crazy teeth.

Word Association

American Idol: No words come to mind. I've never watched it.
"Engaging the culture, changing the world": Lifestyle expectations keep us from doing that.
Jazz: Charlie Parker.
Kurt Cobain: One of the many famous Seattle people. Along with Ted Bundy.
Springtime: Tricking us with the weather.
Madonna: I'm not into pop music very much.
Gwinn: The 20 pounds I lost over the summer, moving off campus.
Panic at the Disco: Not into them.
Music majors: I am one. Nerds, sometimes.
"High School Musical": Never watched it.