Strange Cathedral by Mystery School

Strange Cathedral, the final Mystery School release, from 2013.

Here’s what Jon wrote about the album.

Life itself is a Strange Cathedral! This is a companion album to Secret Teachings. These two albums were developed together & they are linked thematically as well, but Strange Cathedral is the most eclectic of the two albums, featuring music from 5 different groups of musicians and work from 4 different studios! It was co-produced by the amazing Patrick Donicht (check out Unusual Tales) who also engineered all but 6 of the pieces. Patrick also played most of the drums. Be sure to track down his amazing woodwind-driven jazz band Pocket Monkey. You will be glad you did! I’m also proud of the versatility of my other amazing engineer, Mehedad Azadi. He sat down and pounded out the rhythms necessary to complete 4 tunes, 3 of which appear on the album. Strange Cathedral was mostly put together at Patrick’s woodsy studio on Camano Island. Also of note is the great drum work of Scott Severson and the eccentric bass presence of Bill Bainbridge, and all hail the masterful fretless bass stylings of the mighty Martin Sutlovich. Long may he finger the fretless! Yours in service: Jon Strongbow

Here's what Marty wrote this week:

Mystery School was a unique group of individuals who came together simply for the love of music. Jon approached me with the idea to create a band to play his eclectic and electric instrumental music and there were no boundaries to what we could do. We shared a love for modern composers like Ennio Morricone, Steve Reich and Philip Glass. Many of our songs resembled soundtrack music for a movie. We routinely sampled sound effects such as camels snorting while crossing the Sahara desert and the Amazon rainforest with birds and creatures squawking and the sound of waves and ropes rubbing on the sides of a sailing ship. For example I wrote a piece called 'High Noon' which had the sound of lonely wind and actual tumbleweeds blowing down the street of some long forgotten ghost town in the Old West. It was all about creating a mood to take the listener on a journey to another place. We mixed most of our projects in surround sound which really creates an amazing experience through a good pair of headphones.

Some of the bands that inspired us were Weather Report, Shadowfax, Pat Metheny, Mark Isham, St. Germain, Thievery Corporation, King Crimson, Return to Forever, Frank Zappa, Mile Davis during his 'electric era' and many more. Jon and I were in perfect sync in our tastes in music which were wide open. We listened to everything and wrote music with Middle Eastern flavors, Latin grooves, Afro beat rhythms, dreamy electronica and more. Jon's music was like one of his giant stir fry dinners with a multitude of flavors and a blending of many different ingredients. The band would eat together before we played. It was really like a family when we were together. The music always flowed and there were amazing rehearsals that veered off in all different directions! We recorded every practice on cassette tapes. Jon's flat had great acoustics and a natural reverb quality. So go now and enjoy our dream jazz and immerse yourself in it.

much love, Marty Sutlovich

This concludes our Strongbow series. We are most pleased to present it and hope you dig deeply into it for years to come.

Jon Strongbow was a nearly-hidden Pacific Northwest wonder, with six albums of his songs and another six albums of his instrumental music, most with his band Mystery School. He was an author and a graphic artist with multiple books and art prints which he sold at the Pike Place Market, where he was a community fixture. Books and CDs available here. All sales go to his family.