I grew up in a rural area, just outside of a county seat in Central Ohio. Our road was made of tar and gravel. I started singing at a young age, learning from the songs on the radio and the hymns in church. The quiet countryside was nurturing, like a blank canvas to a young painter. Guitar came much later, as did the desire to write my own words, but I lost that desire as I searched for something new in people and places I'd never seen. I drifted, never completely fitting in, though often accepted. Unsatisfied. Desirous of everything and nothing. Lonely. I made friends from the corners of rooms—quietly and seldom quickly. I fell out of a long, contemptuous relationship and found myself without direction. That's when I found my voice for what felt like the first time. I've been tracing my footsteps ever since. Lovers. Fathers. A mother. Siblings. The lost. The found. Sometimes you have to recognize the fingerprints others have left on your skin before you can reconcile your own. My name is Lucas, and this is BRIGADIER, my current musical endeavor. These songs and the words that come before and after are my personal catharsis, and the past days and weeks and years have led us here to you. I'm unsure of what they will bring, but they'd love for you to know them.