alt-J frontman Joe Newman has gone solo with an equally weird-but-catchy name, JJerome87. Newman has signed with Mushroom Music / Virgin Music Group and is hard at work on a “forthcoming full-length project,” according to a press release. “[‘Brush Me Like A Horse’] is the story of a man slowly turning into a horse,” Newman said in a statement. They didn’t turn into a horse, but their reputation went through a metamorphosis.”Newman will play this single (alongside other, unspecified tunes) during his debut solo performance on Tuesday, February 17th at Los Angeles’ Sid The Cat Auditorium. Then, in summer 2023, they played a series of dates behind the 10th anniversary of their debut record, 2012’s excellent An Awesome Wave.