keeping momentum

Photographs by Rick Perez

Better Days Festival artist Strange Case discuss the magic of collaborating, staying motivated during the pandemic, and their brand new song, “Superfly”.

Malibu, California

Who is Strange Case and what is your music about?

Usually we'd say something fuckin' cliche and cheesy about how we are this, that, and the other, but it's pretty simple. Mikey and I (Zane) love each other very much, and we write some half decent songs together. As long as we don't end up hating each other, Strange Case will be releasing/ performing music for years to come. We usually write music about things we've experienced, or what we imagine others experiencing. Sometimes we just make shit up. Whatever sounds cool and tells a good story.

For each of you, how have you grown and changed as people since being part of Strange Case? What have you learned about yourselves?

Mikey: I feel like I have grown a lot because of the band. I never realized how much time and effort could go into something that started off as just a hobby. It has also made me appreciate every single person who has made art, come to our shows, or even just listened to one of our songs in their car when we release them. It's very humbling to say the least.

Zane: I've learned that writing music as a collaborative effort is my favorite way to create. It gives me an extra set of ears and opinions on things when I find myself stuck. It's also very rewarding to co-create something with another human and bond over something we are both very proud of.

What have been some memorable experiences?

The most fun we've had to date was a weekend back in February. We played a raging house show Friday night in Isla Vista and slept in SB. We drove up to SLO the next morning and surfed in Pismo Beach. That Saturday we played a fun gig in San Luis and drove home later that night. Looking forward to more of those weekends once things go back to normal.

Since quarantine and Covid-19, what have been some struggles? How are you dealing/getting over those struggles?

At our size we can't afford to lose momentum. Most of our fans and growth comes from playing live gigs. In March we had a show every weekend booked out for two months straight. We were devastated when those were all cancelled. We have now stayed motivated, and switched our focus to releasing singles, and building our digital presence. We have a music video coming up for our latest single "SUPERFLY", which will be our first legit video. We also have a live stream coming up which we are very excited for. We will continue to practice weekly, honing in our live show for the future gigs next year. Looking forward to it!

You just released a new single,"Superfly". What is the story behind the song?

This track was recorded exclusively in my bedroom during the first two months of quarantine. After our drummer left, we were forced to program drums for any songs we worked on at the time. This gave the song a more hip-hoppy feel, but we had a lot of fun making it and will most likely continue writing songs of that vibe.