Sweet Unrest’s Jack River on Sobriety Through Music
- 4 hours ago
- 4 min read
London-based band Sweet Unrest put on a recent Tonic Music fundraiser gig at The Camden Eye. Lead singer, Jack River, speaks to us about delving head-first into music and recovery.
Jack River has a mission to not only pursue music, but to dedicate his life to it. Making music was not a gradual process for the singer of gritpop band Sweet Unrest, but rather clicked into place when dealing with addiction.
It started when Jack was studying psychology at university, and soon realised he felt “lost” in life, as if he was not doing what he was supposed to be doing. “I had a tough time at university,” he admitted, “I think a lot of it stemmed from wanting to start a band.”
“I got into different forms of drugs deeply, and it got pretty bad, to be honest.”
So much so that the singer quit university and moved back home to Winchester, where he would live with his dad and work in a restaurant locally. It was in this period of his life where he was recovering from substance use disorder, but began to rely on drinking to get through it all.
Eventually, the singer decided it was finally time to commit to his dream of starting a band, and made the bold decision to move into the hustle and bustle of London. It was until he moved to the city that he realised he knew absolutely no one, and had to virtually hunt down musicians.
After posting Facebook ads and downloading however many apps there are for musicians, Jack managed to meet Marlo (lead guitarist) and Dan (drummer), and eventually Tom (rhythm guitarist) and Leon (bassist), where Jack admitted it had been a struggle to find musicians for a while as they were either “flaky” or “only wore their pyjamas on stage.”
“With Marlo and Dan, it was just so effortless,” he explained, “in the first ten minutes of us jamming together, Marlo and I wrote a song. It was insane, he made me play in a way I had never played before.”
And with that, Sweet Unrest was born.
“Being in a band is the best therapy I could ever ask for, it keeps me sober.”
JACK RIVER
When reflecting on the band forming, the singer shared that moving to London made him feel as if he had found his community, something he had been seeking throughout his life.
“It changed my life when I found my band and the music community,” he said, “I found this group of people that understand me, and the music, and all the things that I care about.”
“I felt like a functioning, happy human being for the first time in my life, because I was loved and accepted for who I am.”
As of April this year, Jack has been sober for five years, and he only has music to thank for it.
“It is easier than ever to stay sober because I have the music, the mission, and the purpose,” the singer explained, “I think that is the only reason why I got into drugs and drinking in the first place, because I did not have that, and I was frustrated, I was looking for anything that would give me a semblance of wonder or meaning.”
Despite having an “addictive relationship” with his band, he admitted that it serves as a “healthy replacement” to his past addictions.
“Being in a band is the best therapy I could ever ask for,” he said, “it keeps me sober.”
“When you are an artist, it is crucial that you have to express yourself. You have to create your art. It is not a bit of fun, it is actually necessary."
On Friday 13th March, what is typically an unlucky day, was in fact a lucky day for Tonic Music, as Sweet Unrest put on a Tonic Music fundraiser gig at The Camden Eye, where they raised £126.00.
Every donation helps us to support music professionals and music fans access free therapy sessions, peer groups, skills workshops and training courses. Thank you to Sweet Unrest for this kind donation, as the money raised will go a long way in supporting the services that we provide.
“We [the band] would not be where we are today without the music, and the sense of thinking and therapy that it gives us,” Jack said, “Tonic Music means a lot to me and to the rest of the band.”
“I wish I knew about Tonic Music from the start.”
When asking Jack about the band’s plans for the rest of the year, the singer explained how they are “quite busy boys” over the summer, with a lot of gigging and releasing new singles.
“I want to experiment and not only say the things that I want to say, but to push myself and the rest of us to say things we did not even know we could say,” said the singer, “I think that is the job of an artist.”
“We want music to become our careers, and we want to create beautiful art. If that can help people in any way, then that is even better.”
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