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Stranger Again

by Blue Cactus

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  • Compact Disc (CD) + Digital Album

    - Wallet case
    - 6 panel insert
    - Sleepy Cat sticker

    Includes unlimited streaming of Stranger Again via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
    ships out within 3 days
    Purchasable with gift card

      $15 USD or more 

     

  • Streaming + Download

    Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
    Purchasable with gift card

      $9 USD  or more

     

  • Stranger Again - Vinyl LP
    Record/Vinyl + Digital Album

    - 12" Standard Weight Vinyl nestled in a poly-lined inner sleeve
    - Single pocket matte finish jacket cradled in a polybag
    - Gatefold insert
    - Sleepy Cat sticker

    Includes unlimited streaming of Stranger Again via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.

    Sold Out

1.
Today was the day he left you ‘Cause you can’t hold the flame you used to And all this runnin’ round Left you ragged and bruised Blue as the day Wait for the end of your story Dawn holds her morning glory Wild runs the color til it fades Blue as the day
2.
Turn out the light to feel you See me alone in the dark Don’t it feel like the first time with you Holding my heart? We’ll pretend we’re lovers, Something more than friends Right beside you but I wanna be closer than this On your mind On your mind That’s where I wanna be all the time Let me keep you wondering I wanna be your stranger again All your secrets your stories You can keep it all to yourself Don’t it feel like the real thing Falling before we fell To the ground the autumn leaves Breaking against our skin Babe it’s cold outside Won’t you come on in? On your mind On your mind That’s where I wanna be all the time Let me keep you wondering I wanna be your stranger again Let me keep you wondering
3.
Rebel 04:19
I broke in the right bones I cut all the right lines I ain't foolin’ anyone I can try just to get me in a rental How did I get by not being your home? I was a rebel then, now I just get along I was a rebel then, now I just get along Too many things going out the way I'm going I was a rebel then, now I just get along I put on the right face I walk in the right shoes I ain't losing anymore I can't fly but you get me sentimental Now that I can die without your love on loan And I know I can’t go back the way it was
4.
Come Clean 03:38
I think it's about time I come clean The hardest part is settling I think it's about time I got right with me ‘Cause I've been becoming everybody I never wanted to be I didn't want to be your liar But you made a good one out of me I didn't want to be your fighter 'Til you put me in the ring Now I just want to come clean Every man's heart is made for breaking And now I done the damage too Heavy words keep dragging me Carrying all the weight Of your gravity I didn't want to be your liar But you made a good one out of me I didn't want to be your fighter 'Til you put me in the ring Now I just want to come clean
5.
Rodeo Queen 03:31
The world’s passing by No one’s gonna try It ain’t easy Living in wayside All the glitter See how she shines A rhinestoney rodeo queen You were standing inside Her mirror ball tide It ain’t easy Living in wayside All her circles Swirling around you Halos and rose gabardine No words for your song You just sing along In the shadow of the rodeo queen The world passed you by Took everyone for a ride You were standing outside No matter how you tried It ain’t easy Living in wayside
6.
Worried Man 03:23
Ain't a song left to sing On a day cold and gray Dark clouds gathered round Took my sunshine away Got a hole in my heart And the sole of my shoes Been going down the road Too low to sing the blues Where's the worried man to sing my song? Troubled mind to hold my head? Ease the pain upon my brow 'Cause nothing in this whole world can Save the worried man Too poor to leave Too poor to try Poor boy, when you gonna learn to say goodbye? Where's the worried man to sing my song? Troubled mind to hold my head? Ease the pain upon my brow 'Cause nothing in this whole world can Save the worried man It’s a penny for a wish And a dollar per the acre Dig yourself a hole but pay the undertaker Too poor to leave, too poor to try Poor boy hang his poor head and cry Where's the worried man to sing my song? Troubled mind to hold my head? Ease the pain upon my brow 'Cause nothing in this whole world can
7.
You're fine polished silver You're aging ruby wine I learned of the good life I can't touch you You're a bow on the heartstrings You're a crystal clink of champagne I heard of the good life I can't touch you Heaven might have been mine for the taking Now what's taking me isn't taking its time You were fading in sunset Through to indigo and I knew A touch of the good life But I can't touch you
8.
Enough 03:49
You got me spinning round But you ain’t a dancer You never lead to solid ground Love used to feel like falling You were holding me down You got me sinking But you ain’t an anchor Treading water you thought you could swim Don’t you know there ain’t no lifeboat Gonna get you outta here I just want to be enough. Got all the words but you ain’t a poet Keep them locked down deep inside With all your fear and you’ll never show it Just turned to pride You just turned to pride I just want to be enough. Gonna get you outta here
9.
Radioman 05:52
Thought I heard you in the static Calling out my name In the waves and wires Of the fuzzy astral plane At first I couldn't see you Then I closed my eyes — Rolled the dial, turned you up Tuned in Radioman right on time Radioman leave the world behind Searching every station For a single play rotation Calling in Your current rising Way up in the attic Your signal growing strong Glowing by the Fireside, Familiar old theme songs Johnny Dollar solved the matter Pearl was all aflame — Rolled the dial, turned you up Tuned in Radioman right on time Radioman leave the world behind High up in your tower Together for an hour Calling in Your current rising Your frequency is cracking Transmitter blows a fuse In the waves and wires, Your Word is shining through Dead air resurrected Petey's breaking chains — New believers with receivers Tune in Radioman right on time Radioman leave the world behind Blurring constellations Closer to salvation Calling in Your current rising
10.

about

Much of this album was written during an intensive week-long artist residency at Wildacres Retreat, in the North Carolina mountains. Between late night musings of our mutual nostalgia for video rental stores and hours spent waiting by the radio for our favorite songs to be played, once signs of our youth now-turned relics of the past. Between the stillness of cicada song bleeding through the walls of the hundred year old cabin we called home that week in August and the rise and fall of the shape note singers, reverberating over the Blue Ridge in perfect harmony with that magical place. The rest came in spurts at home when we were able to make the stillness and find the songs we had been carrying.
We weren’t in much of a hurry to record these songs as we were to get to know them, to flesh out the simple skeletons we had assembled. Throughout the course of touring and playing these songs live with our band, they came to life, and we knew we had found the people who needed to make this record with us: our bass player and co-producer, Alex Bingham (Hiss Golden Messenger); our drummer and creative collaborator, Gabe Anderson (Sleepy Cat Records); and Nashville-based pedal steel player Whit Wright (Joshua Hedley, Elizabeth Cook) who joined us for the eight day session at Bedtown Studios, Bingham’s lakehouse-turned recording studio in Roanoke, VA.

credits

released May 7, 2021

Written by Steph Stewart & Mario Arnez

Mario Arnez - Vocals, electric guitars, acoustic guitar
Steph Stewart - Vocals, acoustic guitar
Alex Bingham - Bass, Mellotron, synthesizer, percussion
Gabe Anderson - Drums
Joe MacPhail - Hammond Organ, Wurlitzer
Whit Wright - Pedal Steel
Skylar Gudasz - Vocals
Heather McEntire - Vocals
Saman Khoujinian - OP-1
Daniel Faust - Percussion

Produced by Alex Bingham & Blue Cactus
Recorded at Bedtown Studios
Engineered by Ryan Johnson & Saman Khoujinian
Mixed by Ryan Johnson, Silkworm Sound
Mastered by Greg Abate, Neon Audio

Cover Art Design by Gabe Anderson
Photos by Chris Frisina
Vinyl Package Design by Gabe Anderson

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Blue Cactus Chapel Hill, North Carolina

"If you've ever wondered where country and Americana music is going, look no further. Blue Cactus is painting pictures of limitless possibility."
NO DEPRESSION

"You can't help but fall in love with the heartache."
PASTE

"If country music is often about familiarity and comfort, this is more like having the rug artfully pulled out from under you without even noticing it."
CREATIVE LOAFING
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