Mike McCready’s Rock Opera Takes Shape: New Tracks Surprise Fans Live

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At the Thunderpussy show at Seattle’s Showbox, McCready debuts Queen of the Season and other tracks from his still-mysterious rock opera Farewell to Seasons.

Mike McCready picked his hometown for the next big step in the rock opera he’s been working on for years. Last night at Seattle’s Showbox, during a set with Thunderpussy that mixed the band’s own songs with AC/DC and Black Sabbath covers, the Pearl Jam guitarist debuted six tracks from his opera, confirming the official title: Farewell to Seasons.

Before launching into the songs, McCready gave the crowd a quick rundown of the project: “Wow, this is so cool. What I’m doing tonight is playing some stuff from this rock opera I’m working on called Farewell to Seasons. It’s about a character named John Alex. There are five songs – there’s a lot more, but I honed it down to this mini-opera. John Alex was… everybody knew him, or knew a version of him. He was a singer, a friend of mine… but it could be anyone.”

With this, McCready revealed for the first time the central character of the opera: John Alex, or Sean Alexander, a symbolic and universal figure inspired by the community of musicians and friends that shaped the Seattle scene. It’s not a direct biography, but an archetype embodying talent, fragility, friendship, and loss – themes that run deep in the city that gave the world grunge and alternative music.

The Tracks Debuted

During the show, McCready brought to life five tracks from the opera, giving fans the first real taste of the story:

Dropping such a solid block of new material suggests the project is moving into an advanced stage of development, even if the final form, release plans, and live future remain up in the air. Click here to check out more clips from McCready tearing it up with Thunderpussy.

MIKE MCCREADY SETLIST – SHOWBOX, SEATTLE, 11/12/2025

Setlist: Queen of the Season (with Thunderpussy), Jonathan Alexander Intro (with Thunderpussy), Rock Rules (with Thunderpussy), Farewell to Seasons (with Thunderpussy), Jonathan Alexander Outro (with Thunderpussy), Spoken (Acoustic solo version)

THUNDERPUSSY SETLIIST – SHOWBOX, SEATTLE, 11/12/2025

Setlist: Thunderstruck (AC/DC cover) (with Mike McCready), Firebreather (with Mike McCready), Put Your Hands on Me (with Mike McCready), Sallie Mae (with Mike McCready), I Can Do Better (with Mike McCready), In Your Honor (with Mike McCready), N.E.D. (with Mike McCready), War Pigs (Black Sabbath cover) (with Mike McCready), The Cloud (with Mike McCready), Velvet Noose (with Mike McCready)

Encore: Misty Morning, Thunderpussy

Project Status

McCready has been developing this rock opera for years. Back in 2023, he revealed he’d already written 18 tracks, some of which he planned to sing himself.

At that point, it wasn’t clear if the project would become a full album, a theatrical musical, or both. Last night’s live previews show a coherent narrative arc centered on a main character, while leaving the door open for a multi-format release.

A Personal and Symbolic Project

With Farewell to Seasons, McCready isn’t just paying tribute to his city and friends – he’s telling the story of an era and a community that shaped a whole generation of music. Like Crying Moon, a track dedicated to Chris Cornell and debuted in 2023, these new songs mix storytelling, raw emotion, and memory, blending personal and archetypal elements.

While we still don’t know exactly when or how the opera will be officially released, last night marked a crucial milestone: Farewell to Seasons is stepping out of the creative shadows and coming alive on stage, piece by piece, teasing its story and giving fans a glimpse of its heart.