Strange Pop - Urban Legends (CD)

Strange Pop reminds us of itself with a new, third album. Following the highly successful reception of their first two albums:

 "Ten Years Gone" (2022) and "1979-1982" (2023), the band returns with extremely fresh material that, on one hand, 

stylistically reminds listeners of what they have become accustomed to, while on the other hand, 

it explores entirely new territories. In terms of genre, it is downright revolutionary. No one before has combined art rock with black music in such a natural way.

The album's lyrical layer is bound by a quite open, fluid, and very general concept. The lyrics

represent the lyrical subject's message to their younger self. However, these are not brazen tips on how to live. 

The message leans more towards a dialogue with our younger version, an attempt to understand the motives and behaviors of the past.

And why does the city serve as a kind of common denominator in the conceptual layer?

Why "Urban Legends"?

Let's hear from the leader of Strange Pop:

For a long time, I've been primarily fascinated by nature and have had less and less in

common with the typical city, living on its outskirts for over two decades. However, there was

a period in my life when the metropolis drew me in and allowed me to feel not alone. "Urban

Legends" is not only a letter to myself from the past but also a tribute to the times when I led

a dynamic lifestyle among the neon lights, noise, energy, and street hustle. There were times

when I would take the night bus home and then compose music and write poems until dawn.

Those were incredibly inspiring years. The lyrical layer, along with its general message, refers

to those times, and therefore to my sensibility from that period. Hence the title of the album.

So, why "Urban Legends" and not, for example, "Urban Memories"? Even if we think we have a perfect memory, many of the things we retain in our minds distort over the years and

become something akin to a legend. And since the memories from the aforementioned period

are associated with the urban fabric for me, I’ve decided to name the third Strange Pop album "Urban Legends".

Michał Dziadosz

In terms of execution Strange Pop firmly sticks to its chosen course. The formula of fully natural music, 

with minimal use of contemporary means is still alive. Arrangements usually close within sixteen tracks,

 and the sounds remain fully analog. However, this time the concept went even further. The "Urban Legends"

 album was not subjected to mastering. This was the intention for the material from the beginning. 

That's why the mixes took many months and were tested on vastly different equipment. 

That's why the sounds on "Urban Legends" are so organic, close, and alive. Sometimes they seem to come right out of the speakers.

In the musical layer, Strange Pop remains true to itself, though it definitely changes its direction on the compass. 

From the very beginning, the project belonged to those searching, even if it started with the well-tested formula of seventies progressive rock.

This time it’s still art rock, but with a sincere opening to urban music. Especially soul. Dark soul for dark souls...

Inspirations: Daft Punk, David Sylvian, David Bowie, Paul Weller, Sade, Robert Glasper, Frank Sinatra.

Michał Dziadosz: compositions, lyrics, arrangements, vocals, bass, rhythms, analog synthesizers, electric piano, guitars (4,7), realization, production, mix.

Guest appearance: Kovy Jagliński – guitars (1,3,4), Pablo Si – guitars (2,5,7)

1. All My Nights 6:11

2. Disco 5:12

3. The Child 4:18

4. Wave/Night 4:51

5. Nocturnal Lifestyle 12:43

6. Step Out Of The City 2:25

7. Splendid Solitude 4:24