We caught up with the Tacoma-based band Strangely Alright to find out about their latest release ‘Maybe If’ amongst many other things. Enjoy!
Hi all, tell us about yourself?
First, thanks for having me. So many different layers to a question like that. The simple answer is I am a musician, husband, father and friend who is clean and sober in recovery.
What is your songwriting process?
Typically when I write by myself, I come up with a chord progression or melody of some sort before I do the words. But recently my friend and guitar player in SA Sean VanDommelen has been writing chord changes and riffs and sometimes even complete songs that I’ve added my lyrics and touches too.
It’s the first time in a long time that I’ve had a partnership that I completely trust. Writing by myself is cool, but there’s something extremely satisfying about creating art with someone else. And the stuff we are doing together is pretty damn fantastic.
Tell us about your latest release?
‘Maybe if’ is another single in the line of the psychedelic, atmospheric stuff we’ve been doing lately. I think it’s about looking in for answers. What does it mean to you?
What message do you think your music conveys to your fans?
Be you because we’re all enough. And an underlying message that love and kindness matter and are more powerful than hate.
Who are your musical influences?
The usual culprits… LOL…The first song I learned on guitar was Twist and Shout…So I guess you could say I’m influenced by everything from the Isley brothers to The Beatles.. There’s a whole slew of things including new music from today floating out in the universe that sometimes seeps its way into our stuff.
Who are your non-musical influences?
My daughters, Jesus and his message, John Lennon, my mom, Martin Luther King, to name a few… Numerous members of my program of recovery have changed my perspective on things in life.
I have found if I stay open-minded and perceptive about what’s going on around me, almost anyone or anything can show me a different way to look at things.
What’s the best gig that you have ever played?
The one that comes to mind was playing a club in Osaka, Japan, called the Bottom Line. It was my first trip to Japan, the club was packed, and people were loving our material. A great memory.
What is your funniest gig moment?
Recently when our keyboard player Raymond Hayden put on a unicorn onesie for the final song of the night a couple of years ago. People loved it, and I laughed so hard my stomach hurt… LOL
What do you think are the biggest obstacles for bands/artists today?
The noise.Not only on the world political stage but in the musical realm, there’s so many bands and artist’s vying for attention. There’s so much of everything.
What advice would you give to other bands/artists starting out?
Define and decide what success looks like to you. And if you have a passion for what you do, pursue it.
What are your hopes for the next two years?
Well, we have a couple more singles to do, and then we plan on putting out some vinyl later in 2021. We will, of course, do a couple of videos to go with these things.
I have also been learning about sync licensing. My head is going to explode, but it’s something I’d like to pursue because I think we have some amazing material that would fit in well in a major motion picture.
FV Music Blog September 2020
https://www.facebook.com/StrangelyAlright
https://www.instagram.com/strangelyalright
Twitter: @strangelyalrite
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