STRAND OF OAKS - ERASERLAND VINYL (LTD. ED. 'CLOUDY' WHITE 2LP GATEFOLD)

LIMITED EDITION 'CLOUDY' WHITE 2LP VINYL GATEFOLD

Release Date: 22nd March 2019

Strand of Oaks, aka Tim Showalter, returns with his band for a high-stakes, high-octane rock album and his most ambitious and varied to-date. Weaving through Springsteen-fuelled 'Heartland' rock, lo-fi post-punk, heartfelt ballads and even a touch of The Clash - Eraserland has the lot!

FFO: The War on Drugs, Phosphorescent, Hiss Golden Messenger, Craig Finn

"“When I was writing these songs, every day I would walk on the beach and I was completely alone and overwhelmed by fear... but then I realized how there really aren’t any rules for who you are, who you’ll become, or who you think you need to be. ‘Eraserland’ is just that. It’s death to ego, and rebirth to anything or anyone you want to be.” - Tim Showalter. In December 2017, Tim Showalter was uncertain about his next record and the shape it would eventually take. With no new songs written, he was unprepared for the message he would receive from his friend Carl Broemel, the conversation that would follow and the album that would become ‘Eraserland’. Leading off with standout track ‘Weird Ways’ and his powerful declaration of “I don’t feel it anymore,” ‘Eraserland’ traces Showalter’s evolution from apprehension to creative awakening, carving out a new and compelling future for Strand Of Oaks. Revived by the support of Broemel and his bandmates, Showalter felt the pressure to deliver songs worthy of musicians he had admired long before and after a 2015 Oaks / My Morning Jacket tour. So in February 2018 he spent two weeks alone in Wildwood, New Jersey writing and demoing all of the songs that would eventually comprise ‘Eraserland’. In April he went into the studio to record with Kevin Ratterman at La La Land Studios in Louisville, Kentucky with Broemel, Hallahan, Koster and Blankenship of My Morning Jacket as his band. Jason Isbell also contributed his Hendrix-esque guitar work to Eraserland, while singer / songwriter Emma Ruth Rundle provided gorgeous vocals. Every song was recorded live, with all musicians playing together in one room and working to bring Showalter’s ideas to fruition. “I remember sitting next to Tim and Kevin listening to the final mixes with tears rolling down my cheeks,” said Hallahan. “From start to finish, this one came from the heart.”