Ascending from the noisy San Francisco scene after doing time as part of The Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, The Stratford 4 is a more versatile beast, grafting emotionally complex themes onto deceptively simple song structures. Produced by Chris Walla (Hot Hot Heat, Death Cab For Cutie). "No matter how good your new favorite band is, the Stratford 4 are better. Sexy astral travelers from San Francisco, they specialize in melancholic-erotic guitar ballads, as singer Chris Streng wanders through the feedback in search of another girl and another planet. All the songs are great, but the killer is the eight-minute 'Telephone.' Streng sings about calling his mom on a Saturday night. He tells her that he's sitting at home alone, listening to music, and he wonders if he's going to be all right. She advises him to get out of the apartment and live a bit - but as long as he's there, he may as well put on another Dylan record...It's one of the best rock & roll mom songs ever written, from a truly amazing album. More, please." --Rob Sheffield, Rolling Stone