When The Band Of Heathens dubbed its 6th studio album Stranger, they had no idea how prophetic that title would turn out to be. As Ed Jurdi acknowledges, it’s certainly an unusual time to release an album. “The strangest,” he says. “Maybe no time stranger. Since we started, there have been sweeping, revolutionary changes in the music business, but, in this global pandemic, we’re just a microcosm.” “We’re fortunate we’ve been able to turn directly to our fan base during the pandemic,” adds Gordy Quist. “Lately, we’ve spent four nights a week live-streaming private concerts to fans, plus one night publicly streaming with the whole band Zooming in from home. At first it seemed strange until the walls started coming down and we realized how connected we are by the fabric of music.” Stranger turns out to be an apt metaphor on both a meta — it’s an apt description of the current world — and personal metaphor in our increased estrangement from one another in silos defined by economy, politics, race or religion. “In a time when the voice of the chorus drowns out the individual, it can be hard to search and find an independent path and a unique voice,” Jurdi reflects on the latest single “South by Somewhere”. “The quest to find one’s inner inspiration, bring it to the surface through expression and to feed and nourish that fire, in the face of any obstacles — to seek and explore the road that splits off of the road less traveled.”