Unmaking of Invisible Crown

After the release of their sophomore album Whirlpools, expectations ran high to begin work on their next batch of songs. Initially the period was full of excitement and celebration. However, to complete Invisible Crown the group would have to endure local wild fires, canine alienation, a worldwide pandemic and failed pizza recipes, which would all find a voice in the upcoming material. All who listen to Invisible Crown will become a voyeur to the forgoing glamorous mess.

Starting in late 2018, wild fires hit Ventura County, and the duo poured their feelings of anxiety into writing and recording “The Fire”. This song was the prelude to ignite and fuel the duo’s following batch of works.

Sessions at WIC5150CA Recordings could be a tedious affair, with little for Seven and Cleo to do. To keep the boredom at bay, and to keep friction with the writers to a minimum, they often sought refuge in the master bedroom. It’s hard to say when and where their feeling evolved, but at some point they became emotionally intertwined.

And if that wasn’t enough, rumors began to circulate of Seven’s roving’s with the “King of the Garden”.  In an interview with The Americana Kennel Club, Seven was misquoted as saying, “Handle every stressful situation like a dog. If you can’t eat it or play with it, just pee on it and walk away.” 

Seven’s moonlighting activities were later memorialized in Track #5, “Gimme a collar, colored blue, I’m solid tough and true”

The antifolk songs “Gimme a Job” and “Power” both came to be around the time that an immigrant caravan, 10,000 strong, were headed directly to the California border from San Pedro Sula. The songs do not take a political stance, but question whether Santa Clause is real and if there is not an inherent flaw in the law of attraction.

Marking the passing of David’s dear father Joseph, both songs “Cover Me” and “Righteous Ride” add a transcendent tone to the album and a glance into the couple’s perspective on immortality and faith. 

To complement the bands limited production routine, they headed up the coast to vacation around Point Mugu, Big Sur, Monterey and Carmel – hence writing more material and collecting video footage for “The Hammer (of Witches)”, which was released as a single on the new moon of 4/23/20.

As the songs were well underway and mostly all recorded, production took a detour while Loren piloted the recording console for B.F.F. Tamara Sue Varney, in the making of the Finger Pickin’ Suites (working title); a delightful, poetic and contemporary collection of semi-acoustic works set in the time of Pre-Covid 19.

David used this time to build a brick and mortar pizza oven in their back yard. He documented the process with photos and videos, which is available for viewing on their youtube channel.

Invisible Crown, as always, features the Laue’s multi-instrumental “Orchestral Folk” sensibility, but this album is treated with a new voice, the tenor guitar; Loren’s newfound fetish. They also brought in, Myrtle, curtesy of Ear Trumpet Labs.

In short, the album consists of seven songs. There's no doubt that Seven had final say in the track count, as well as the album's release date: 7/7/20.