Jason performs in multiple groups around Toronto.  He performs solo, as a duo, and bass/guitar in other local bands.   The best way to find Jason's next performance is on Instagram.

Growing up before the ubiquity of home recording, Jason learned his craft as the classic voice and guitar combination.  From the very beginning he was not interested in the common ballad.  The first album Ambidextrous was written for solo performance, and it lived that way as a solo acoustic set performed many times before it was ever recorded.  To keep the solo act fresh, most of the songs had twists like delicate finger-picked passages melting into punchy power chords.  Everything was self-taught and figured out intuitively.  When finally recorded, Ambidextrous included several over-dubbed layers but remained, at its heart, an acoustic folk album.  

After the long mortgage-paying break, and a leap forward in recording technology, the home studio experimentation started in about 2016.  Like playing the actual music, recording engineering was self-taught.  The album White Collar Melodies was born here.  A whole new writing style emerged from the ability to cut, paste, loop, and infinitely layer.  No considerations given to the difficulty of actually performing it.  There was still a strong resistance to synthesizers at this stage but the virtual organs sounded good and were all over White Collar Melodies.   Many electric guitars passed through as rentals, and some were kept.   There was experimentation with time signatures and more fancy chords, and the album included Jason's first punk song.  It was a bit of a genre mess, but tied together strongly with the lyrical theme that all songs related back to working in an office.   White Collar Melodies was also a one-man show: Jason played every sound, self-recorded, mixed, and mastered it.

Since White Collar Melodies took almost 3yrs to finish while still working the day-job, Jason stepped back to consider creative options after this.  He joined a few bands and they broke up.   Synthesizers were finally embraced.   Thirty-ish tracks on a collection of singles and EP's have been released in the 5 years since White Collar Melodies.   Many of these songs also included collaboration with other players.  In 2025 Jason released Post Nursery Rhymes, full production collaboration with Gabrielle Papillon in Halifax.  “PNR” is very much a sibling to White Collar Melodies…because it's basically about the rest of your life that is NOT work.   PNR also was the beginning of Jason's “orchestral era” that still continues…where following from Gabrielle's influence there's a lot more drama and orchestral sounds in songs being produced these days.   

In 2026, songs are still coming out, they are being recorded for later release.  A full pipeline plan for a few years is in motion.   Always be recording. 

I run a DIY “full stack” musical shop...now including the building of the instruments.   I call this portfolio of activities the Make It Fit Musical Empire, which is also a statement of philosophy.  To me, "making it fit" means to keep the focus on what makes the best sound, and not necessarily what it looks like, or how messy the process is.   Bling is not required.   I record in my pyjammas, and the instruments I build do not have fancy paintjobs.   My primary product is for your ears, not your eyes.  

I am prolific in the studio.   I love the recording process, clearly more than many of my peers.   So I release a lot of music because really nothing can stop me!   But the flipside is less focus on playing live.  My most recent releases are above.   Coming up next are some singles for the fall of 2026, and then the follow up “Post Nursery Rhymes Vol 2, Side A” is planned for winter 2027.  

I do enjoy building instruments.  It's a different part of my brain.   I started just for fun, and posted a few short videos about it.   I was surprised to discover that people really liked this content.   I'm no snob when the people speak!…so I'm leaning in.  I get more instruments this way too.    Some recently completed projects with YouTube videos (see link below):

• a semi-acoustic ukulele blending a P90 with piezo pickups
• a semi-acoustic double bass
• restoration of an 80's baritone ukulele

In progress now, I've got a “Recycler Bass” made from all the leftover parts, and scrap wood.  Another nice 80's classical guitar that's showing it's age, might be restored and converted to a fretless guitar (interesting sounds there!).  Might have other ideas later.  

Email at j.pilling.music@gmail.com

Otherwise Jason is friendly, open to conversation, on multiple platforms.  Links to all the socials and platforms are in the sidebar or dropdown menu.