Strange Land

Where it comes from: "Under Watchful Eyes" music

2012-01-02T14:33:00.002-06:00

"Under Watchful Eyes" started with a beat I had used for a tune my high school jazz band played. It was titled "Nemesis," a jazz waltz, which I had never played before. I was pretty proud of this beat, and had tried unsuccessfully to use it in one of the first Strange Land songs which thankfully never saw a studio recording. Yet I somehow always came back to that jazz waltz.

One day last spring, my practice brought me back to the beat. I walked over to my piano and started trying to plunk out what I remembered about it. It had started with drums and bass playing sometimes in octaves, other times walking. With that as my starting point, I added a heavy dose of dissonance for the walking parts. Putting the tune in drop D helped me tap into my King's X influence a bit more, and made playing easier, especially the bits that dance around G#. Finally I played around with augmented 5ths because I love that sound. It sounded good in both minor and major tonalities, so I kept them both. They're now the pre-chorus and chorus sections, respectively.

Sean came up with the vocal melody around the pre-chorus and chorus, and I want to thank him for that lovely harmony. I went to work on the melody for verses, thinking a blues scale would work for this down-and-dirty rockin' jazz waltz. In the process I discovered that the melody of "Symphony of Destruction" works pretty well during the verses--give it a try sometime!

For a long time (until two weeks before the release) we used "Nemesis" as a working title as Sean and I bounced ideas back and forth. After the lyrics were finalized, we discussed changing the title; it no longer suggested anything Nemesis-like, but instead had a more brooding, suspicious feeling. All told, it was the quickest write for a Strange Land song to date.

Where it comes from: "Under Watchful Eyes" lyrics

2011-12-23T22:06:00.002-06:00

Everyone has people they come across in their lives that give them the creeps. For one reason or another, some people make us feel uneasy by what they say or how they behave. We wonder what is going on in their heads, oftentimes without much thought. Sometimes though, we imagine what they're thinking about. We go down that road. We don't like it. We shudder and go back to our happy places, trying to forget about those who unnerve us. I chose to go down that road and stayed there for a while, until I came up with the lyrics for "Under Watchful Eyes."

Sean started with some great lyrics about looking out the window, pondering someone we don't particularly have warm, fuzzy thoughts about, and it got me thinking about someone who sends a shiver down my spine (and no, I'm not sharing who that is here!). My aim was to get YOU thinking about who gives YOU the willies, without being too specific. After all, the best horror flicks let the audience's minds fill in the blanks, rather than shock you with gore.

So visit our music page, download "Under Watchful Eyes," and let your mind wander to that certain someone who makes you look over your goose-bumped shoulder.

New track is out!

2011-12-16T10:31:00.003-06:00

Hey all,

It's been a while, but Strange Land is happy to let you know our first new track since 2009 is out now. You can download "Under Watchful Eyes" for free, or chip in a little to help the cause. Get high quality versions, including FLAC, here http://strangeland.bandcamp.com/track/under-watchful-eyes or grab the 192 bitrate mp3 from our RN page. Thanks for sticking with us, we'd love to hear from you. Let us know what you think of the tune!

This is the first new track from Strange Land since becoming a studio duo. We're working parallel paths, finding ourselves writing both stripped down songs, and playing in the studio sandbox more than ever. This one is on the stripped down side. We're releasing the songs one by one as 'pay what you want' downloads, and you can have them for free if you like. Once we have enough material out we'll put together an album package with some special bonuses. Obscurity is the enemy, that's why we want you to have the track for free. All we ask is that if you can't chip in 50 cents or a buck, share the song with your friends.

Wishing you all a brilliant holiday season,

Sean and Brad

It's not what you have, it's what you do (with plywood)

2011-10-07T19:41:00.000-05:00

There is a disorder among musicians and recording engineers known as GAS. Not the kind you get from a chili dog, the kind you get from enjoying new music gear, finding the new toys, discovering new sounds. You want that guitar with the best wood and the best pickups money can buy. You want the latest recording interface with the new 673 bit Fribleratz D/A converters handmade by German elves. I have this disorder, but as I get older and wiser it is fading, losing it's hold on me. In the last few years I began repeating a new mantra in my head. It's not what you have, it's what you do with it. A guitar you found at a pawnshop for $50 might not be a great instrument, but it had a sound, a place for use, and a purpose. That $20 microphone collecting dust might not sound great, but it's sound might have a place in a mix. Now, there's a lot to be said for getting good sound in. There are some things that can't be fixed in the mix, and your engineer's head (maybe mine) will explode if forced to try. But questionable gear can make great sounds.

A few months ago I recorded a couple songs for the Delusionist demo, and recently I've recorded guitar tracks for three different new Strange Land songs. My main guitars for these projects have been a Stratocaster and a Telecaster. Not too remarkable. But these two aren't ordinary Fender guitars. The Stratocaster is a 1989 Squier II, made in India. It was my first guitar, and at one point it was almost painted as an art project to hang on the wall. It's been resurrected with a new bridge that doesn't really fit right, and a $40 Mighty Mite prewired pickguard. The guitar cost me $185 in 1989. Oddly, these things have a cult following and it's still worth about that much. It has a rather snarly, rude, Ygnwie Malmsteen-ish tone, great for metal. I started my guitar playing with single coil pickups, and now I'm leaning back to them. I just love the cut and attack. The Telecaster is a recent acquisition, $200. It's a Squier Standard, made in Korea, also from 1989. Everything on it is stock, and far from the the highest quality components I've seen on Squier guitars. The pickups sounds good to me, this is my first Tele. It even has mismatched tuners. I've got great clear clean tones and thick warm distortion out of it. It sounds great on it's own, but the Tele also seems to have a magical ability to the be perfect blending match to any other guitar for multi-tracking.

The most notable factor for both guitars? Their bodies are made of plywood. Yep, just a bunch of who-knows-what mystery wood glued together. Until I looked inside I always wondered why my Strat felt like it weighed 40 pounds. And I think they sound fantastic. Other players would just dismiss these guitars out of hand, just because they bear the Squier logo. Just because they don't have top of the line hardware. And especially because the bodies are plywood. But I don't care, they work for me and I don't need to go spend $1000 on a guitar. Just a little icing on the cake, I'm using amp simulator plug-ins. Free ones. They also sound fantastic, so far better than the one I paid for. I just can't get the sound I want from it. The freebies just have what I'm looking for. If there's a lesson here, I think that you should be sure to squeeze every possible useful, musical sound out of the gear you already have before you give in to your GAS. And when you do get the new Hursenbergerstein Tube Mic preamp or your MetlGodz 9 String Axe Of Doom guitar with 4 active pickups and genuine chainsaw attachment, don't get rid of your old one. It might be just right for something down the road.

From 10/7/11

Some string things

2011-09-21T09:56:00.001-05:00

Hey all, shot this video a few weeks ago, but I just got around to editing it now. Partly because I'm trying out some new video editing tools. Anyway, a little peek at some guitar and bass tracking. If I remember both of these videos are around my second or third take.
-Sean

2 down!

2011-08-14T17:16:00.002-05:00

Hello, friends. I just finished up drum tracks for song No. 2 for our post-Catharsis collaboration. As you may have read from Sean's earlier post, I used to be called "anti-technology boy" back when we started Strange Land. I had many problems sending files of ideas made with Finale on school computers back in the day. Now that we're a bit removed from the college days (perhaps more so than we'd like to admit), a few things have made it easier. For starters, the tech is just way better, and extremely user-friendly in comparison to 1998. Secondly, I'm no longer using public computers on a college campus that have been compromised with who knows what. I still tend to let my email inboxes get pretty backed up, though.

For the music tech geeks

2011-08-12T11:28:00.000-05:00

In this post I'm just going to geek out a bit about the setup and the gear we're using now. If gear talk makes your eyes glaze over, go here for a break, and check back later. On to the fun.

Starting with the software, we're using Reaper. It's pretty much the best thing since sliced bread. Every bit as good as the more well known names like ProTools, Logic, and Cubase, but about one tenth the price. And it operates on sort of an open source code model, very flexible, customizable, and it updates frequently. The slew of plugins it comes with is also very good. Brad is using Reaper, it's plugins and a few additional VSTi's. I've got myself loaded down with a lot of extra stuff. One of the best things about Reaper is it (and it's own plugins) are fiarly light on the computer. You can run a lot of tracks on even a moderately powerful machine before it bogs down. You can even run it off a thumb drive. I do a lot of midi work as well and Reaper does lag behind Cubase in the ease of working with midi. Or it did, version 4 just came out and I haven't had a chance to dive in yet.

The interface we're using is a Tascam US-2000. 16 inputs including 8 mic preamps. I've been using this one a while myself and I've been very happy with it. Rack mountable, level meter lights, phantom power. It connects via USB2 which made me a little nervous at first, but I've run it as high as 9 in/2 out so far without a hitch.

The mics:

Kick - Audio Technica AT25 Pro inside, Karma Audio Silver Bullet micro condenser outside
Snare - GLS audio ES-57 on top, not mic'd on the bottom
Toms - Karma Audio Silver Bullet micro condensers
Overheads - 2 AKG Perception 220 larger diaphragm condensers

A couple of those mics aren't well known. The GLS Audio ES-57 is a Shure SM-57 copy. A little bigger around, to my ears it's a touch brighter and hotter than the Shure, and at $85 for a three pack, it's a no brainer. You can see it on the photos below, between the two higher toms. Brad's kit set up is a little tricky to mic, it's compact and the cymbals are pretty low, so that's where the snare mic could fit. I've mic'd the bottom of the snare in the past, but never used it in the mix. I'm happy with what I get from the top and the overheads.

Fitting mics in a small space is also what got me on the trail of the Karma Audio Silver Bullet. The toms are especially hard to fit a mic on. A 57 might be a go-to choice, but by the time you add the cable, you have a 7 inch tube to stuff under the cymbals. After researching smaller mics, I took a chance on the Silver Bullets. They come in pairs or a 7 mic kit. I got the kit, and just for fun we tried micing the whole kit with just those. It worked actually pretty good, but wasn't the right sound for snare or overhead. They sound really good up clode on the toms and they are tiny. They look like they were engineered to fit inside an XLR plug. Made in China? Sure, but that doesn't mean they won't work great. And it was $90 for the 7 piece kit.

Here's a little photo tour

And here's another video. The audio is just off my camera.

The Road is Long

2011-08-10T17:26:00.000-05:00

Leaving CO in the rearview early in the morning,
driving into the sunrise.

I hope you caught Brad's quick post last week. Yes, it's true, we're back at it in the studio. My trip back to Wisconsin this time was a working trip and I flew under the radar for the most part.

The primary goal was to get all the gear set up, mic up the drums, ready Brad's computer for the task, make sure everything works, and make sure Brad can make it go. This is our first large scale shot at working long distance, so Brad will be handling tracking drums, vocals, and whatever else he wants to do on his own in Wisconsin, and I'll do the same from Colorado. I have to say, for being formerly know as 'anti-technology boy' Brad took to the gear and was having a lot of fun with it. There is something to be said for being in the comfort of your own home, especially when it's a nice, finished basement that not only sounds good, but is a cool place to hang out in.
We definitely achieved the goal of getting everything set up and working properly, and even made a few passes through two of the new tunes. And most importantly, even though it was a working trip, we made time for the new Captain America movie and a little video gaming.

It's worth noting at this time that our philosophy about the band and our approach to it's music has changed. For one thing, we are a studio project for the time being and we are reveling in that fact. Strange Land has never really said no to any idea or influence, and we did way more as a trio than most bands can do. But now all the stops have been pulled. We'll apply whatever instruments and production techniques we need to make the music exactly the way we want. Be prepared for some surprises. We're also going to try a different release scheme. We will be releasing the tracks one at a time, as we finish them, most likely as very inexpensive downloads via bandcamp. Then when we feel like we have enough music, we'll collect them into a limited run cd with some special swag for those of you who want the physical product in your hands.

Brad and I are excited and energized to be working on this music, I hope you will be too.

How about a little taste? A clip of Brad testing out the setup:

2011-08-04T13:17:00.002-05:00

Wow. Recording in my home is so exponentially more comfortable than driving an hour and rushing to get things done in a weekend. I'm really glad to be collaborating with Sean again, and very optimistic that we've got some great tunes that we'll be able to share with you in the future!

-Brad

Lines and ties and barlines, oh my!

2011-05-19T14:25:00.000-05:00

If you can read music, you can have a sneak peek at a new Strange Land song. If you can't read music, ask one of the voices in your head for help.

Catharsis keeps rolling

2011-02-15T19:59:00.002-06:00

Sweet! For the second year in a row, Strange Land gets a nod from the Progressive Rock Hall of fame! This year Catharsis was selected as best progressive hard rock album: http://www.progressiverockhalloffame.com/

2011-01-18T19:53:00.002-06:00

I hope your new year is off to a good start. I thought it was a good time for an update on the goings on in the Strange Land world. As most of you know, we are currently a duo. Brad and I are entering a new phase of writing and recording while living over 1,000 miles apart. We're excited to see how this experiment goes. Over the holidays we got together and discussed our next step. We recorded demos of 5 songs before I moved which feature Chad on bass. For now, we're setting those aside in favor of a totally fresh start. But, it's likely that those will surface in the
near future, too. As for the fresh start, we're working out who needs what gear
to get things recorded, and soon the Sibelius notation files will start flying.

In the meantime, check out some new reviews. Ron Fuchs over at www.prognaut.com was kind enough to review all three
albums at once. I think this is the first time anyone has digested the entire catalog in one go like that. So read the reviews and enjoy!

www.prognaut.com/reviews/strange-land.html
www.prognaut.com/reviews/strange-land2.html
www.prognaut.com/reviews/strange-land3.html

It would also be great if you could stop by and say hello on facebook.
Thanks for listening!
~Sean

New way to get Strange Land tunes

2010-08-27T21:27:00.000-05:00

Hey folks,
The Strange Land catalog is now up at Bandcamp. All three albums are there and the prices are low. There's also some extra stuff. For free - the (slightly) alternate mix of Evolve from the Catharsis promo cd, and for a measly two bucks, a single track version of the Catharsis epic. Twently five minutes of non-stop prog. Keep your eyes open, over the coming weeks and months there will be more free tunes from the vault making their way to Bandcamp.

You can get full album downloads, or single tracks. The best part of Bandcamp, you can get many formats, from 128k MP3 all the way up to high quality FLAC files.

Thanks for listening!

Time only moves forward

2010-08-18T11:05:00.000-05:00

Greetings Strange Land Fans,
Sean here, we've been laying low for a couple months and I've now got the big updates I can share with everyone. As most of you know, I have moved to Colorado. They whys don't matter (no, it wasn't a chick. I'm smarter than that), but I'm here and Chad and Brad are 1100 miles away. When I first told the guys I was going to more (late last fall) I had thought long about it, and had thought of ways we could still keep working. With the internet and a flexible schedule, writing and recording would work. There might have even been shows. We decided to have one last gig before I left and it turned out to be a great show. After that, we took some time off, did some relaxing, some thinking, and starting talking about the future of Strange Land last month.

After some soul searching, Chad decided to resign. The live stage has always been his favorite part of being in a band. Working long distance with perhaps a slim chance of playing shows wasn't something he wanted to do, and I understand and respect that. I've known Chad since I joined Strange Land (it wasn't even called Strange Land) 12 years ago. Chad and I have been the two consistent members of the band that whole time. I'm going to miss working with him. But lest you think Chad has opted for early retirement, keep and eye on Fibonacci Sequence. Fibonacci Sequence is an instrumental act full of prog metal-y goodness. Chad's also filling the shoes of former Cynic bassist Chris Kringle in this band, so no rest for the wicked. Also be sure to check out Dameus Calling. If you like your pop served with brains and great vocal harmonies, you'll like Dameus Calling. Support local and independent music!

As for Strange Land, Brad and I have decided to continue on. We'll be writing and emailing files back and forth for a while and I think by the end of the year I'll be schlepping back to the cheese state to track drums. For now, it will just be the two of us doing everything. We want to focus on writing and recording so we can get new music out to you sooner rather than later. Obviously there will be some changes to the Strange Land sound, as there has been with every member change. Chad, as singer, bassist, and keyboard player, was half of the live sound of Strange Land. We're undecided at the moment if we want to add any new people to the mix. Ultimately it will depend on what the music needs. We must serve the song.

As for what forms the music might take, all I know for sure it that the road is wide open. Brad and I decided that if we're entering this new phase as a studio project, there are no limits. Strange Land really never had any explicit limits, but now all the stops can be pulled. A string section? Sure. Nine drum tracks? Why not. We intend to let our imaginations run wild, but never fear, the Strange Land ethos remains intact. No matter the complexity, we'll make it listenable, too. Unless you only like Celine Dion and Green Day. If that's the case, why are you reading this?

Thank you many times over to all our fans and friends around the world. We make art for our own satisfaction, but we also love to share it with you. Keep an eye on our website, our facebook, our reverbnation page. We'll keep you informed on the Strange Land news, and the news on whatever other projects we might be involved in. Keep your ears open, there may be some special treats soon to tide you over until the new music is finished.

Sincerely,
Sean

Photos from the show

2010-06-20T11:37:00.000-05:00

Check out the great photos from our last show. Taken by our good friend and brother in prog Gareth Glynn Ash.

http://garethglynn.smugmug.com/Music/Concerts-Festivals/Katrina-Johansson-Strange-Land/12618999_jSf2S#906748052_tD3a4

Strange News 2010 #2

2010-05-08T13:53:00.000-05:00

A few interesting bits to send your way today. First, if you've been holding off on buying our cds, or if you prefer downloads, head over to our page at CD Baby. All of our albums are available as downloads for $5 each.

Second, in addition to the reviews that have been coming in, Catharsis has been getting a fair amount of radio play around the world. We have been heard online and over the radio waves at:

Progulus
Prog Rock and Metal
Odd Time Obsessed
Musically Incorrect, 102.7 Triple R FM (Victoria, Australia)
Dangerzone, Radio Katanga 105.1 fm (Aalst, Belgium)
T.N.T. /Radio Hoeksche Waard (The Nederlands)
ARfm (UK)
Friday Rock Show on BBC6 hosted by Bruce Dickenson (UK)
Planet Prog 91.7 WMSE (Milwaukee, WI)

And I'm sure there are more, we just don't always get playlists sent to us. So keep your ears open, and drop by Progulus and Prog Rock and Metal where you can make requests anytime.

Strange News 2010 #1

2010-01-20T16:15:00.004-06:00

It’s been a bit since our last formal news update, so let’s get right into it!

First and foremost CATHARSIS has been out for just about 6 months now and doing well. Our initial pre-sale exceeded our expectations and we are incredibly grateful for everyone who jumped in and snatched up the bonus edition! If you have not yet had a chance to read the Shepherd Express Review by Michael Popke, you can read it here.
Also, if you still don’t have your own copy of CATHARSIS, please stop in at CDBABY and pick one up right now for only $10!

So what else has Strange Land been doing since the release of CATHARSIS? Well, besides playing shows in Chicago, Detroit, and Milwaukee and opening for guitar god, Gary Hoey, we have already been busily writing and demo recording a ton of new material for our next album. We have already laid the bed tracks for four songs and have two more that we are almost ready to begin recording. Once these are all done, we might just pick the best one to post online and start playing out live. In the mean time, however, we have no intention to cease the writing efforts and hope to have enough material begin the real tracking of the next album before the end of 2010!!!

Even being this busy with new material we still find time head out of the studio to perform and have a killer show lined up on February 6th at On The Limiter with our good friends Lyden Moon and Conniption! See you there!

What is Progressive? Who Cares? Take Me As I Am.

2010-01-08T15:35:00.008-06:00

I wrote the following as an email to Sean earlier today. He suggested that I post it in our blog and share it with everyone. Enjoy! ..or don't, either way.

I listened to Dream Theater's 6th album, Train of Thought, for the 2nd time ever today.

I think I like it quite a bit more than the first run through. There are still some moments that seem like they have poor transitions, but as someone who has been digging extremes lately (as in extremely heavy, or extremely poppy) I think I dig the overall heavy nature of this album. Early on in the album from time to time I even kind of forgot Jordan was in the band. The piano driven "Vacant" seems like a nice release from that, though. However, even though I like the initial groove of the title track, when Jordan starts to poke his head in with some of his signature lead and string sounds, something makes me return to wishing that Derek or Kevin would come back to the band again.

One thing that made me give this album another shot was because I was listening to the older stuff the other day and was out on Amazon.com reading one star reviews for Awake and Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes From a Memory and some of them were just shredding (pun intended) those albums for being aimless noodling. Some of them mentioned that they were crap next to Images & Words and a lot of those made me think, “who the hell are you to tell a band like Dream Theater what they get to write and sound like.” I mean, I haven’t been their biggest fan or supporter for quite some time, but even I don’t think, “Oh jeez, Dream Theater should do this or that or they’re crap.” The only thing I ever wished on them was that they would work with an external producer for an outside perspective. Other than that I think they should write whatever the hell they want to write. I think the first time I heard Images I was drawn in by the fact that it was eclectic (and unremorseful about it) more so than the fact that it was virtuosic. If Strange Land has taken anything from our Dream Theater influence, we’ve taken the best thing we possibly could have and that is to be uncompromising about our eclectic albums/writing style/nature. One review said that Dream Theater wasn’t metal (and therefore sucked) and that Opeth was a better example of progressive metal. At this I laughed. I love Opeth, but Mike A. definitely has his shortcomings as a songwriter as well. I have to admit that I never really thought of Dream Theater as 'Metal' (as in \m/) until I heard “The Mirror” and even then only occasionally 'Metal' until Train of Thought was released. But who really cares what category a band 'fits' in?! Bands that defy categorization have always been some of my favorites (Primus anyone?). People are so stupid when it comes to what they think progressive means and how willing they are to apply it to bands. I mean progressive, not-progressive. Who gives a shit? I love Oingo Boingo for being quirky and different from any other band. Does that make them progressive? Guess what? It doesn’t change my love for them even if the whole rest of the world doesn’t think so. Some of the reviews that were complaining about the aimless noodling were written by people who were pitting them against Rush, Genesis, ELP and other first generation bands. That I don’t get at all. If they sounded like 'old school' prog bands (or anyone else for that matter) how 'progressive' would that be? Other reviewers pitted them against The Grateful Dead, Phish, Bjork, and Radiohead. This is just plain stupid because if that is what you like then OF COURSE Dream Theater probably isn’t going to be for you! With all the respect I can possibly muster for those bands I would never go out and write a review slagging one of their albums because I have no business doing so. Do I hate those bands? Yes definitely! (well, except maybe Bjork) Do I think that maybe there is an aspect of their music and direction that I 'don’t get?' Absolutely! ..and therefore if the Dead/Phish-heads would put their bongs down long enough to realize that similarly they have no frame of reference and maybe they should stick to what they know. Anyhow, after all of that frustration I think I was finally able to spin Train of Thought without any expectations and I was pleasantly surprised to read the lyrics to the first track and see that it pretty much was about the points I was making above and the thing we’ve said a million times about our own music. Either you get it or you don’t. If you do, thank you for listening, and if you don’t we aren’t offering you any apologies.

Ok, well thanks for reading my rant.

Chad

Ok, so after I posted this I figured I would add the lyrics for the first track from Train of Thought, "As I Am," which I reference above for those of you who may not be familiar with them:

Don't
Tell me what's in
Tell me how to write
Don't tell me how to win
This fight
Isn't your life
It isn't your right
To take the only thing that's
Mine
Proven over time
It's over your head
Don't try to read between the
Lines
Are clearly defined
Never lose sight of
Something you believe in
Takin' in the view from the outside
Feeling like the underdog
Watching through the window
I'm on the outside
Living like the underdog

I've been trying to justify you
In the end
I will just defy you

To those who understand
I extend my hand
To the doubtful I demand
Take me as I am

Not under your command
I know where I stand
I won't change to fit your plan
Take me as I am

Still
Running up hill
Swimming against the current
I wish I weren't so
Fucked Feels like I'm stuck
Lost in a sea of mediocrity
''Slow down,
You're thinking too much
Where is your soul?''
You cannot touch
The way I
Play
Or tell me what to say
You're in the way
Of all that I believe in

Takin' in the view from
The outside
Feeling like the underdog
Watching through the
Window I'm on the outside
Living like the underdog

I've been wasting my breath
On you
Open minds will descend
Upon you

To those who understand
I extend my hand
To the doubtful I demand
Take me as I am

Not under your command
I know where I stand
I won't change to fit your plan
Take me as I am

Sneak peek at new music!

2010-01-06T22:50:00.000-06:00

Well, what do you think? Hahaha, I crack me up. Well, I said peek, not listen. C'mon, it really is new Strange Land music. Don't look at me that way. - STG

Bruce f'n Dickinson!

2009-12-19T01:20:00.002-06:00

For those who don't know, Bruce Dickinson hosts a friday metal show on BBC 6 radio. Bruce is also lead singer of Iron Maiden. If you didn't know that, what is wrong with you and how did you end up reading this blog?

Bruce played "Soul Made Still" from Catharsis yesterday on his show. Oh yeah! Bruce is so cool I'll even let it slide that he goofed the title track name the first time he said it.

Follow this link (http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00pcdbt#segments) to see the playlist and listen to the show. We're near the end of the show, but hearing Lemmy from Motorhead sing Run Rudolph, Run is worthwhile, too. The BBC only leaves the current show up for a week so go now!

Sittin' Around

2009-11-22T15:53:00.002-06:00

Waiting for the Gary Hoey show. Should be fun tonight. Kassy's cooking us her awesome meatballs (87, to be precise) with spaghetti. Sean made a fresh salsd, I've got garlic bread covered. We originally invited Gary to join in a homecooked meal, but he declined. His drummer Matt Scrufield (formerly of Event) may join us still. Yum, yum.

Also hoping my gear's up to snuff. Matt and Lyden Moon's drummer will both use my kit. Bringing along a spare SD and BD head just in case. It's likely they won't come in handy, but hey, that's the Eagle Scout in me.

Brad
Drums
Strange Land

Little Black Dots

2009-11-05T16:11:00.001-06:00

Something different for you folks today. Here is the scribbled out notation for Prodigo Cras. I based this on The Men Who Spent Tomorrow chorus which Brad wrote. It was originally in E, we changed it to B. I had the idea of doing some kind of acoustic intro for the cd and when I looked at the original notation from Brad, this chorus was a great fit.

I don't guarantee that it's 100% accurate but it's close. I know I left room for going with the moment when I recorded it. Enjoy! - Sean

Be A Pro

2009-10-31T18:01:00.003-05:00

There's nothing like good customer service. I even think it's worth paying a little more for great service. In the world of the performing musician, good customer service is contained in being professional. And by professional I don't mean making a living at it. I don't mean any particular level of technical prowess on your instrument. I mean common courtesy. I mean doing what you say you will do. I mean not behaving like a dumbass. One definition from Merriam-Webster: following a line of conduct as though it were a profession.

For the second time this year Strange Land ventured south of the border to Illinois. We played on the north side of Chicago at the Redline Tap. Cool place, good food. Big thanks to Progulus listeners Iceman and Falcon and their friends and family for coming out.

For the second time this year, a show in Illinois was partly hosed because other bands didn't show up. Click here for the scoop on the previous show. This time there were five bands booked. One cancelled a few weeks before the show. Two more were total no-shows. No call, no excuse, nothing. We were expecting to play a 30 minute set. We played for an hour. The other band that did show, Seeking, was cool. Glad to meet them.

But what kind of a moron do you have to be to just bail on a show with no notice? I've seen other examples of not being pro. Chewing out the sound guy. Wrecking the venues property. Being rude to the other bands and to the staff. Getting drunk and making a fool of yourself. Sorry, but acting like a "rock star" doesn't make you one. I know I'm weird but I've never thought it was cool to behave like a typical rock star. The closest I think you can be to getting away with it is when you actually are a rock star with millions of dollars and a team of lawyers. Even then, I'll still think you're an ass and your behavior isn't cool. You'll just be better equipped to not care and get away with it.

We are probably the most punctual band in the state of Wisconsin. I feel bad if I show up five minutes late. We treat the sound guy with respect. We thank the venue and the other bands we play with. We thank the people who came to see us. That's pro, and that earns us the respect of venues, sound guys, bands and fans. That gets people to buy cds. That gets us invited back to the venue. That gets us invited to open for national acts. That gets other bands to trade shows with us. And that is why we are entering out 11th year as a band. One measure of success in my mind is survival. We've made it 11 years, 3 albums, and dozens of shows because we've outlasted so many other bands. One of the biggest keys to our survival is our commitment to being pro.

Show and a test

2009-10-09T10:12:00.001-05:00

I'm testing the blog connection to my phone. I'm also reminding everyone in the Detroit area to come out and see us tomorrow night. We'll be at The Factory (334 S Main st, Rochester). Doors open at 9pm!
Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device from U.S. Cellular

Catharsis review

2009-08-28T11:11:00.003-05:00

From Michael Popke for The Shepherd Express (print and online):

On Catharsis, Strange Land's third album, the local progressive-metal trio shows why it deserves to finally break free of regional status. Original drummer Brad Klotz has returned to the fold, joining guitarist Sean Gill and lead vocalist, bassist and keyboardist Chad Novell on an album rich with more melodies, vocal harmonies and musical adventure than the band's previous discs. Heavy crunchers "Asinine (Nothing Better)" and "One Drop of Water" invoke Rush and Metallica, but other songs sound more organic, echoing Kansas and Enchant and bringing a delicate balance to Catharsis.
The album opens with "Prodigo Cras," an acoustic-guitar piece that segues sharply into "The Men Who Spent Tomorrow," a scathing indictment of individuals in political and corporate power. Four more songs, each less than six minutes, follow-complete with forays into moody a cappella choruses and dreamy acoustic arrangements. And it's all capped with the engaging albeit sprawling 25-minute, seven-part title track.

ExpressMilwaukee.com

We like fractions

2009-08-27T12:58:00.003-05:00

Our friend Betze over at Odd Time Obsessed posted a cool overview of our catalog. I had sent her this stuff when we released the Catharsis promo, hopefully we'll get the rest of Cathersis up there soon.

http://oddtimeobsessed.blogspot.com/2009/08/strange-land-band-review.html

That is why I do this.

2009-08-24T22:40:00.002-05:00

Strange Land had a show last Friday at a place that shall remain nameless here. I am the diplomat of the band after all, not that you can't all go to the web and find out where it was. It was out first show at this venue and our first within about 70 miles of this place. I thought we made this clear to the venue. We're interested in expanding our territory and reaching new people. Details were sketchy about the show until a few days before. Then, it looked like we were on a bill with five other bands. The whole show started at 6, we were told to be there no later than 10. Ok... looks like we're last. No biggie, with 5 other bands there should be a decent number of people hanging around.

Ah, but it's never that easy. From 6-10 it was an all ages show. We were indeed last and the band that was supposed to be before us didn't show. I thought, fine, we'll go on around 10:30 then. Promptly at 10 all the under 21 people were booted out. The band in stage at the time finished their set with a pretty good crowd still there. But for some reason the venue made us wait until 11 to start. In that time almost everyone left while the cover band got started upstairs (don't even get me started on cover bands. I'll lose my diplomatic immunity). Since the band we we're booked with didn't show none of their people were there. So most of the night we had five people. We managed to snag a few others in passing from upstairs. Add to that, the sound guy was pulling double duty due to an emergency. He was running up and down the stairs doing sound on both stages. He loved us though. Sound guys seem to like us because we don't sound like every other band they have to sit through. At one point Brad's vocal mic behind the drum kit was feeding back and he just unplugged it. We didn't have Brad singing for most of the night. Such is the nature of live shows. Shit goes wrong and you either roll with it or you collapse.

All that said, this was one of the best shows we've had in a while. We played well. We had fun on stage. And the crowd that was there was engaged. I have so much fun when I can interact with people from the stage. We cracked jokes. I got everyone to introduce themselves. We laughed. I may take my music seriously, but I don't take myself seriously. It wasn't my show. It wasn't Strange Land's show. It was our show, band and audience together.

I've played a lot of shows for many different kinds of crowds. I'll take small and enthusiastic over large and indifferent any day. I'm they guy in the band who isn't gung ho to play out. I prefer writing and recording. But for shows like this I will always come out and I will enjoy playing on stage. All I need to do to be successful is reach one person. To make one person laugh. To know that one person understands what I'm trying to do. For one person to feel like I understand them because of a song we wrote. We got lucky, we reached more than one last week. And that is why I do this.

Special thanks to Progulites Iceman and Falcon for coming out. It's cool to meet hardcore prog fans and to put faces and real names to the chat board nicknames.

August 28th Flyer

2009-08-13T22:51:00.003-05:00

Latest News

2009-07-31T01:12:00.002-05:00

Strange Land's new album CATHARSIS has now been officially released and is available at CD Baby for only $10.00. To visit our CD Baby page and order your own copy click here now!

Unfortunately that means the pre-order offer is now over, but don't despair, you still have one chance left to pick up a copy of the bonus package. Keep an eye out for details on the upcoming official CATHARSIS CD release party where we will be offering up our remaining few bonus packs on a first come first serve basis.

To coincide with the official release of CATHARSIS we have given Strange Land's official home on the web quite the face lift. Please stop in at www.strange-land.net and have a look around. You'll find all new blog/news and shows sections, new MP3's and wallpaper to download and links to visit us at all of our other homes on the world wide web.

Booking Away

2009-07-29T10:33:00.000-05:00

Well, we've been working hard at lining up shows to promote Catharsis, and we've got some nice venues lined up. Hope to see you out at a Strange Land show near you! Keep an eye on our events page for gigs in Milwaukee, Chicago, and Detroit!

Brad

Upcoming shows

2009-07-28T15:44:00.002-05:00

Grab this widget to stay informed or sign up on the mailing list. List sign up and a show widget are on the left.

"Catharsis" by Strange Land - Photography by Gareth Glynn Ash "The Celtic Camera Photography"

2009-07-19T20:32:00.002-05:00

"Catharsis" by Strange Land - Photography by Gareth Glynn Ash "The Celtic Camera Photography"

Posted using ShareThis

Bernardo Terrón Pics up

2009-07-17T16:39:00.001-05:00

Well SL fans, we've just received a pair of 8 X 10 glossies from our good friend and Catharsis guest artist, Bernardo Terrón. You may have already heard of Bernardo for his Latin Grammy nominated albums, ¡Bueno Queso! and Fiesta con no Pantalones. Unfortunately, we did not get them in time to add them to the CD booklet, but we're proud to share them with you here.

Mi corazón va con usted, Bernardo.

Catharsis Sales Update - Watertown, WI

2009-07-15T13:41:00.002-05:00

Our 3rd CD "Catharsis" is now owned by my chiropractor and my financial advisor. If that's not small town livin', I don't know what is.

: )

Brad
Drums
Strange Land

The Malcontent @MARS

2009-07-12T22:24:00.001-05:00

Finally getting some MARSfest 2007 video up on Youtube

Spread the word

2009-07-08T13:43:00.002-05:00

Here's one of the many Reverb Nation widgets we have. Use the thrid one (below) to get your own and spread the Strange Land word. Use the second to join out mailing list

Last Call!

2009-07-08T02:24:00.001-05:00

If you have been procrastinating on ordering the pre-order bonus package
edition of Catharsis, the new Strange Land album, the good news is it is
not yet too late. The bad news is that there is a limited number left and
the offer will be coming to an end soon.

You have two weeks left to order so stop in at the Strange Land web page
(http://www.strange-land.net/merch.html) and place your order while there
is still time and while supplies last. Wednesday, July 22nd will be the
last day you will be able to place your order and once we are out there
will be no more of the pre-order packages made available.

An elision of purpose

2009-07-05T18:10:00.001-05:00

So, the new Strange Land cd is out. Special deals are selling now, the general distro will start in a week or two. It's been a too long process to get this one out. The reasons are varied, from our own procrastination to major personal issues, to playing too much of the waiting game. Nonetheless we are pleased with the results and we thank everyone who has stuck with us. When we picked the title we didn't think we'd actually be having a cathartic experience making it.

So what happens next? Is this the end of a process, the beginning, something in the middle? It all depends on what kind of band you are and what you want out of your career. Some bands just love making new music, so the release of a cd is pretty much the end. You finish the album, get the word out that its available, and move on the the next one. The amount of promotion you do I guess depends on how much energy or money you have for it. Once you've told people it's available you get right back to making new music.

On the flip side the album release is just the beginning. You get it out there, push the promotion, set up a tour. You play as many shows as you can hoping to collect some new fans along the way. I suppose the bigger you get the more this second option is what you do. Bigger bands have the resources to mount full scale tours. For the most part bands in this mode don't even think about recording for a year or two.

I think we'll try to hit a mark somewhere in the middle. As part of growing as a band I think the balance shifts around. We can justify more advertising but not a full scale tour. Hopefully more shows but we won't be putting off writing and recording new music to make time for shows. I'm sure we'll find a balance. I know for a fact it won't take 5 years to release the next one.

Video

2009-07-03T14:23:00.000-05:00

Check out our Youtube channel. We should be getting some new video up soon.

Welcome

2009-06-30T22:41:00.001-05:00

Welcome to the new Strange Land music blog. We'll be posting news and whatnot from our corner of the Prog Metal world. The news now is that our new cd Catharsis is out! Buy it at our merch page