This was to be my third album and I was already getting the itch to be experimental. I had a small handful of songs and, on a whim one day, I laid down a drum track that spanned five songs and thirty minutes. I had a vague idea of what I wanted, and I think I had the song order in mind, but the track was improvised and lots of space was added between songs to allow for various weirdness.

Working with an old Fostex four track cassette recorder, I would bounce tracks right and left, building upon mixes, resulting in a dense, psychedelic work and amassing a stack of cassettes with this piece in various states of completion. I had a lot of fun recording this and pushing the limitations of my recording gear, and it also served as a welcome distraction during one of the most difficult periods in my life.

Along with the five songs that make up this suite, there were two additional original songs recorded - "Say Hello" and "Undertow". For some reason, even though those were recorded at the same time, they sound completely different and it was decided to release those songs as a single instead. Doing that allowed this suite to remain intact as a standalone piece, effectively turning it into an EP. There were also a few cover songs recorded during these sessions, including takes on Marillion's "Kayleigh" and the deep Rush cut, "The Big Wheel". Those will see release at a later date, probably on the BG label.

The original vocal track was laid down hastily, a couple months later, possibly while drunk, and it was pretty horrible. So bad, in fact, that I ended up shelving the entire project and moving on. I always wanted to go back and fix it but the time never seemed right, the era of the four-track cassette recorder had since passed, and I never had my hands on a mix without the vocals. Eventually, as I organized my archive, I came across one and, while the instrumental track was at least a couple of stages away from being complete, it was still workable. New vocals were added and the set was mastered. I considered adding new instrumentation, to enhance the recording, but decided to leave it intact, for historical purposes.

At least for now. It's possible, even probable, that I may return to this recording and add more layers. Until then, enjoy this never-before-heard slice of the early days of FDM, when anything seemed possible.

Oh yeah, the sound of the preacher that appears before "The Reply" was totally by accident. It was a radio signal that got picked up by my guitar processor. It was a total Spinal Tap moment, but it was also perfectly fitting, both in the timing as well as how it related to the themes in this piece, and so it was decided to leave it in. Just adds to the spookiness. I dig it. Hope you do too.

-CA, 1/28/19