Legendary independent New York-based rock label Equal Vision Records and Thomas Erak & The Ouroboros are excited to announce the release of (AU), the new solo showcase from the singer-songwriter, revered guitarist and founding member of Seattle progressive post-hardcore dynamos The Fall of Troy (stream/purchase HERE). A pandemic passion project, a life preserver, a journal, and now an album all in one, (AU) documents Erak’s remarkable life shift from just barely being able to stay afloat to somehow having all of his personal dreams come true.
Additionally, Thomas Erak & The Ouroboros also release the music video for “DCLXVI (666)”, directed by renowned writer, photographer and filmmaker Jesse Korman. Korman had the following to share about the clip and working with his longtime friend: “Collaborating with Thomas for his new video felt like playing Jenga with lightning — unstable, thrilling, and totally worth it. From filming outside in the blistering cold NYC alleyways to turning my studio into a porn set, there was never a dull moment.”
Erak adds: “When I wanted to make a ‘narrative-only’ video, Jesse was the guy that came to mind without question as the one to lead the charge. He absolutely killed the video; I couldn’t have asked for more. He definitely went the extra mile and I can’t wait for what the future holds and all the projects we have brewing in the future.” Watch the music video for “DCLXVI (666)” on YouTube HERE and with Brooklyn Vegan HERE.
2020 was a year that was both strange and difficult for all of us. Thomas Erak had been living in Nashville for a few years and was actually playing music less than ever before in his life, but learning more about guitar than ever by watching some of the pickers that would play gigs from 11 a.m. – 11 p.m., five days a week. In February of 2020, Erak went back to Seattle to visit his family and plan his moves for the next year; he had been wanting to move to San Diego for close to eight years with his group of friends located there because it was his bug-out spot when the weather was too much to handle in Seattle, Nashville and other seasonally unforgiving places.
Then March rolled around and all of his plans went to shit. With the pandemic, there were no tours and no rehearsals, and he didn’t even know when he’d see the stage again. So he did the only thing he knew how to do — he started writing songs with friends. During another difficult time, Erak took a break and reconnected with Ranen Johnson, a good friend and amazing engineer who worked out of Robert Lang, Erak’s favorite Seattle studio.
“I owe him lots of love and props for getting me a rate I could afford as I wasn’t able to work,” Erak recalls. “My royalty checks aren’t rockstar money. Haha. Plus, they only come three times a year and I was using them all for either rent or this album since I was on EBT and was living in the cheapest spot in the U-District in Seattle I could find. It was nicknamed ‘The Hole’ … Fitting. Ranen helped me finish up the guitars and the vocals and was just a pleasure to be around as by now I’d been locked up for years not knowing if I’d ever play music live again.”
Going crazy inside, Erak figured the least he could do is turn his current circumstances into something positive and go to the studio as much as possible. Finally the winds of change slowly started to blow as he was able to play a couple one-off shows, which he’d use the money to record more of this “Album” that was never meant to be. At this point, it was simply Erak operating in survival mode, trying not to self-implode.
Eventually live music was back and Erak was touring again. He would go on to meet a very special person who would go from being his best friend and support to being his wife in a chapel in Las Vegas in less than three months (“Hey, it’s punk rock, not Mozart,” he says jokingly). A testament to hard work and determination in both life and his art, (AU) marks a new dawn for a celebrated artist that fell on some pretty tough times but came out the other side.
“I truly can’t believe it. I’m married to my best friend, with my little french bulldog Banzai, and our stepson, Gabriel,” he says proudly. “I also made an album all by myself and played all the instruments. I hope it surprises you and you enjoy it (as much as I surprised myself with what I was able to pull out of myself).”