A Family of Strangers – Sounds of Oz

The world of side projects is a bit of a musical mixed bag; for every success there are many more dismal failures. Happily A Family of Strangers, the latest project for The Butterfly Effect front man Glenn Esmond, falls into the former category.

It’s too early to determine whether chart success will follow the band, but it should if their debut EP New Techniques for Beginners and Champions is any indication. This is a really strong collection of six tracks, songs that step away from The Butterfly Effect but not so far as to alienate the band’s strong fan base.

I find these tunes more accessible than those of the iconic Aussie hard rock outfit. There are some big gritty guitar chords and dark lyrics, but the focus on the melody helps the listener connect from the first spin.

Fans of The Butterfly Effect won’t be disappointed with rock anthems like “Don’t Forget (03.03.03)” and “Silly Love Songs,” but I find the tracks that are dramatically different from Glenn Esmond’s previous work a little more intriguing. “Here Without You” shows he is capable of producing a real radio-friendly ballad of love lost. A Family of Strangers exposes their soft underbelly again with “The Velvet Divorce (Follow).” But my favourite track is probably the closer “Farewell, Mr Hooper,” a wild rock sea shanty. It’s such a quirky tune, the kind of thing I imagine a crew of pillaging pirates might create if you handed them electric guitars.

It almost seems unfair to bands starting out to call New Techniques for Beginners and Champions a debut EP, because A Family of Strangers are so experienced and in control of their sound. They’re equally at home in the sunlight and the shadows, and they take us to both places in this recording. It’s a really accomplished first taste of a band I look forward to hearing a lot more from.

The Butterfly Effect’s Glenn Esmond has a brand new band. He’s currently broadening his horizons with the new act A Family of Strangers.

The outfit came to be when Glenn found himself coming up with new songs that didn’t quite fit with TBE. The solution was obvious; he needed to create a new one.

“A Family of Strangers has been a fantastic opportunity for me to go back to basics and create something from the ground up. I wrote and recorded the songs, I’m promoting the music and I’m managing myself,” Glenn explained. “The satisfaction of heading back to the beginning, trying some new ideas and building it up from a grassroots level is pretty immense. The idea of these songs being heard and resonating with an audience is exciting to me and so, more than anything, this debut EP is about paying dues and getting out there to people one on one and connecting.”

Side projects can be a bit hit and miss, but I love this song “Don’t Forget,” from A Family of Strangers’ forthcoming EP New Techniques for Beginners and Champions. It’s got such an epic, melodic rock sound. It’s a bit more commercial than a lot of The Butterfly Effect stuff, but that only makes it that more accessible. If this is a taste of what’s to come when the EP hits stores on November 12, we’re all in for a treat.

If you like what you hear, you can check out the rest of the tunes when the band plays live in Queensland and Victoria next month.

5 November 2010 – Hard Rock Cafe, Surfer’s Paradise
6 November 2010 – X&Y Bar, Brisbane
11 November 2010 – Bended Elbow, Geelong
12 November 2010 – Evelyn Hotel, Melbourne
13 November 2010 – Pelly Bar, Frankston

Image used with permission from Stephen Green Consulting

Tag: A Family of Strangers

“New Techniques for Beginners and Champions” – A Family of Strangers

Glenn Esmond’s Bit on the Side