The pursuit of visceral pop is one that takes on many forms. For some there is the thirst for the lo-fi analog cadence of cassette tape crafts that offer a listen to anachronistic arts from eras the audience was not initially privy to during the first go round. Others look for something that moves and shakes them to the core in ways that are hard to define. Ultimately we all want something we can feel. In a world that is in a constant state of reconstruction and repair, we desire something that is immediate and tangible. Our time is consumed wrapped up in the digital void, staring at screens as our latent needs for actualization become further suppressed for the sake of sashaying through the motions and movements that comprise another work day. Beyond the hybrid models of on-site drudgeries and work from home scenarios that transform our humble confines to nearly round the clock home offices — we all want some form of escape. Something that reminds us that we are alive. Spending our livelihood continuously building things for others, there is always a dormant drive toward the notions of demolition that obliterate piecemeal the parts we spend tirelessly developing and arranging for others in the name of our own rudimentary subsistence.

Delivering some much needed reprieve are the black metal leanings of Strnad, the central core of prolific Stockton artist Chema Jose Medina (Devoter, Surf Club) and Oakland’s Cyrus Vandenberghe (Welcome Strawberry, Still Ruins). Enlisting their friend Cristian Negrete for vocals, Strnad present their debut single “Decimate” that embodies the title in every semantic sense of the world. With chords that spiral and swirl like California’s relentless atmospheric river storms, Strnad breaks the silence of our regularly scheduled lives to shatter the lanterns and scatter the sparks to ignite a bounty of bonfires to light up the spring skies, offering some heat and warmth to break the season’s incessant cold spell.

“Decimate” starts out by establishing the central chord hooks that materialize like the cloudy breeze of winds that precipitate an ensuing landfall of rain and hail. Once the percussion hits, the track takes off like a mosh pit of slam dancing denizens seeking a much needed diversion from the rituals of everyday life. “Decimate” rocks and waves like the tides of the Pacific, rife with moments of brief calm before the rapid rhythms and gravely vocals rage like a menacing body of water pummeling the shoreline boulders into the erosion carved granules of pebbles and sand. Strnad presents the much needed break and necessary diversion you have been looking for. A reason to head bang with abandon in the comfort of your own living spaces, a track designed to be played at unreasonable volumes on headphones and earbuds that makes the perfect compliment to a workout or yoga session that is dead set on unbottling all the angst and ennui that we stuff deep down inside (in favor of adhering to life’s business as usual philosophies).

Jose Medina provided some notes on the formulation of Strnad with insights on the process:

The idea to start what is really a studio-band, emerged one evening when we were at Cyrus's apartment in Oakland going through his records, and unbeknownst to me, it turned out that he had a selection of black-metal albums. Although we were already working on a different band together, because of our mutual appreciation for the genre, starting this band became an engaging idea.

I think we both come from a more traditional in-person writing process, but the pandemic really forced us to embrace working on song ideas more remotely, especially in our case considering that Cyrus lives in Oakland, and myself in Stockton, but honestly, for us this perhaps has been a more productive process of writing than how we have done things before. We both demo ideas at home and bounce them back and forth, maintaining clear communication with each other on the direction of the songs. For “Decimate”, the entirety of it was written and recorded remotely. Although technically Strnad is a duo, we always loved how Steely Dan collaborated with other studio musicians/friends, so Cyrus and I recruited my friend Cristian Negrete to layer some of his vocals for this song. I've always been a fan of his vocal work and we hope to have a reoccurring collaboration with more of our friends on future tracks.

Keep up with all the Strnad developments here.