It kicked off in the summer of 2013 like a rabid wildebeest: Primitive folk singer-songwriter Matthew Hable launched his latest musical vision, Strange Ideas, and hasn’t looked back. Later that year, Hable enlisted Eliot Curtis on bass guitar and Fred Jennings on drums, quickly establishing themselves as core members of Strange Ideas.

The Monterey native cites his influences in legit, record store-geek fashion: “psych folk (Kurt Vile, Syd Barrett), garage rock (The Velvet Underground, The Kinks, Thee Oh Sees), oldies soul (Otis Redding, Bill Withers, Fats Domino) and some traditional country influences (The Carter Family, Hank Williams).”

For its first live performance on Jan. 25, 2014, at Pierce Ranch Vineyards in Monterey, Strange Ideas opened for Jake Bellows (Saddle Creek Records). The show sold out. The buzz was on. Since then, the trio has performed regularly throughout the Bay Area and Central Coast, including The Catalyst in Santa Cruz, supporting Sparrows Gate (Rat Palace Records), and The Starry Plough in Berkeley with The Tomb Weavers (Burger Records). Additionally, Strange Ideas has toured the Pacific Northwest and performed on two radio programs: KWVA in Tacoma, WA and KRML in Carmel, CA.

In the summer of 2015, Strange Ideas began recording their first album with Phil Manley (Life Coach, Trans Am) at El Studio in San Francisco. The EP, released on June 6, 2016, was mastered by Mark Kramer, whose past clients include Daniel Johnston, Will Oldham, and Half Japanese.