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When Josh Fiedler says that making a solo album was truly the last thing he ever wanted to do, trust us: He’s not fronting. While he’s proud of the accomplishments he’s made as a loving husband and doting dad, he’s also made his fair share of heads swivel as a founding member/lead guitarist of The Juliana Theory. But it was only last year that he decided to assume his position in the spotlight to write and record It’s Hard To Lie To Strangers, his solo debut for Equal Vision Records under the sobriquet LOWREV. 

Since completing the record in 2025, Fiedler has been downright excited. And for good reason: It’s because on It’s Hard To Lie To Strangers, every decision is all on him, resulting in a great number of highwater marks. “Time Has Faded” is a melancholy track addressing the flickering resonance of old friends who are no longer part of his life. The prairie-dusted, echo-laden guitars on “It’s True” feels like a drive through a desert at 3 a.m. toward your sweetheart. The shimmering electronics of “Interlude 26” portend the warm, and tender “Smiles Light Up The Room,” a post rock-textured valentine to his son who has autism. In a bizarre twist, he delivers a significantly darker version of La Roux’s 2009 hit, “Bulletproof,” simply because he could. And “Gather Power” brings down the curtain on the album with a cautionary tale about a relationship heading for sadness.

While the “sad bastard music” tag might fit, LOWREV’s upbeat tempos and Fiedler’s impassioned (as opposed to “wallowing”) vocal prowess articulates the songs significantly. When asked about his non-musical influences, Fiedler lists the usual suspects (“Wife, kids, wanting revenge on anybody that ever wronged me,” he says before laughing), but has grace about how far he’s gotten, professionally and psychically. “There’s that range of emotions that you’re having in your 40s of working a job, raising kids and having this double life.” 

For right now, however, Fiedler feels ambitious and confident on his first solo flight. With LOWREV, he’s not keeping up some kind of cool-dude appearance. After all, consider that album title. “Like I said, I have never wanted to do this in the past, and I just decided that I'm just gonna do it,” he resigns. “Whatever happens with it is cool. The fact that it got done is a major accomplishment to myself, given all the craziness that my life is. Besides, I’m so busy, I don't think my wife would let me start another band...”

It's Hard To Lie To Strangers track listing:

1. I Hope I Get To See You Again
2. Where You Going?
3. It's True
4. It's Hard To Lie To Strangers
5. You're Nothing
6. Interlude 26
7. Smiles Light Up The Room
8. Time Has Faded
9. Bulletproof
10. Cold Shoulders
11. Gather Power