The Journey Continues

Life happens in hyperspeed when you travel to the far reaches of outer space. 

I remember standing in a circle after practice and sharing that I needed some time off to sort some things out.  There was acceptance and processing there in that circle and at the end we agreed to a hiatus with no strings attached.  Everyone was free to pursue other projects and we would see what the future held. 

A year and a half later, the four (super)humans that are SANOMA are making our way back into the surf western mesosphere that we descended from that night after practice.  The time on terra firma was what I needed.  My IV is out now and recovery is in a new and strengthened stage.  It’s time to load up the protein packs and astronaut ice cream for space exploration again.

What are the odds that four guys with families, full-time jobs and numerous other responsibilities and pursuits would be able to regroup and pick up where we left off?  Is it by chance that we have this history chronicled in surf western rock & roll songs and that we can blast off again without a hitch?  Even things like a place to practice (loudly), gear that sounds great and families that support us is amazing.  The journey continues and that is a source of wonder, gratitude and stoke for me.  Like space travel, there are seemingly endless possibilities.

Guitar Names

Sometimes names for guitars just happen and it works.  One night at practice, we were joking around about the Stratocaster I was playing and it was christened Tri-Klops in the moment.  3 pickups – 3 knobs - 3 eyes.  Mythic, ominous, primordial and gigantic tone. On top of that, Tri-Klops is Skeletor’s gammavisionary henchman in Masters of the Universe.  He can see through solid objects, has night and dista-vision, and can shoot energy bolts from his eyes. 

It’s also fun to brainstorm names.  Feel free to add to the list, specify what kind of guitar the names would best match, and/or cast your vote for the best names:

Yeti

Blood Moon

No Quarter

Kraken

Neptune

Ghost Rider

Sunset

Phantom

(Billy) Bones

Black (gray, red) beard

Poseidon

Sikanda

Rhindon

Glamdring

Power Sword

Stormrider

Magma

Greataxe of Shifting Worlds
Godzilla
Artax
Atreyu
Falkor

Headless Horseman

https://sanoma.bandcamp.com/track/headless-horseman

Imprinted on my mind from childhood are the cartoon images of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.  A headless horseman terror galloping a massive black Clydesdale through the haunted woods in villainous pursuit of the poor sap Ichabod Crane.  At some point, the flaming jack-o-lantern explodes into a wall of flames and a Skeletoresque cackle erupts and echoes out into the darkness.  Ichabod was never seen again.

I didn’t read Washington Irving’s Legend of Sleepy Hollow until this past Halloween and I couldn’t put it down.  The Disney caricatures paved the way for this spooky short story to further capture my imagination.  The song had been written and recorded by this point, so the inspiration was mainly the image of a decapitated night rider and the sound of the hoofs of a raving red-eyed specter horse pounding the cold, dead earth.  The mood and boom-chicka tempo of the song make room for the humor found in the animated interpretation. 

This was a fun song to record.  There are multiple whistling tracks, ominous group ah’s, and we hit a mallet against a metal sheet to get the clap of thunder/rifle fire noise.  The guitar influence of Travis and Dallas Good (Sadies) comes through on the solo and Nick’s trumpet carries the melody of an epic night chase through Sleepy Hollow.