Today we’d like to introduce you to Danny Strickland.
Alright, thank you for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, how did you get started?
Jeeze that would be a long read. As a pretext, I’d like to say that I don’t include anything that happened in my life in this story for sympathy. But just as a reminder of how everyone has their troubles in life and you never know the full extent of someone overcoming obstacles in their life. I know leagues who’ve had it rougher. But basically, I was born in Waycross, GA, in 1988 to my teenage parents; Dad was a musician/carpenter/praise and worship leader, mom took care of me and my sister Jordy, and was a waitress by trade, but was a very inspiring poet. My dad would write songs with her writing. I was a curious, creative, and interested kid with a nice dose of ADHD, Always asking a question and trying to understand how things worked. I started playing drums at my church when I was around 7. I did well enough in school to get by. I would draw in class, ABH (always be hummin’), and just generally always be looking for something to be engaged with, like any kid. I stayed at my Mema’s a lot (my paternal grandmother, she taught me a lot about art and supported me in everything), every day enough life in lil old Waycross during the 90s. Later, in 1997 My father joined a touring Christian reggae band called Christafari, and we eventually moved to Jekyll Island. My dad taught me a few tunes on guitar. Things were good.
We were doing the best we had ever done and were a generally happy Lil fam. Then the family unit ultimately fell apart due to my parents getting heavy on drugs/alcohol after my Fathers and Mother passed away due to Cancer. We moved from place to place, eviction to eviction, then extended stays for a while, eventually ending up homeless in Jax beach after burning all bridges or just avoidance of friends and family. I was 12 or 13. My sister and I went into the foster system for a while till my Nana (Maternal Grandmother) got custody of us. Because the case was split between FL and GA, it was difficult for her to get us. But she finally did, and we were back within the family; that’s when I started playing guitar a lot more and writing songs. I put a band together with my new friends now that I was in middle school and back in Waycross. I was finding a certain stride, and then my Grandparents got divorced. After a wild few months, back to the foster system roller coaster, we go. After some shuffling, we ended up with my uncle in Yulee/Fernandina around 9th grade, where I met most of the friends I’m still playing music with today. My parents got sober and got their lives on track, but the system’s difficulty at the time to get custody of us back, despite doing everything they could, was never overcome. I stayed with my uncle till I was 18, then moved in with my best friend Max’s family, the Wohlfarths, for the last bit of High school and after. They took me in and treated me like family. I was lucky enough to have many people who helped during these times. I continued to write and build musical knowledge, learning a lot by ear from cd’s, playing in the jazz band at FBHS, and playing with and hearing the variety of musicians in Fernandina, as well as forming my bands Smokestack Lightnin’ and Future 1983 as well. Things progress as they do when you’re in your young adulthood.
Then I suddenly lost my mom just before turning 21, which knocked me back for a while, but I eventually got myself together through the support of friends and family and having music as an outlet. I moved to an apartment complex in Jacksonville with a friend and began working maintenance there and making music in my free time. I continued to write, learn and involve myself with the music scene. I played in several bands, including friends, Thinguins, Tambor, and Dovetonsil. I had a marriage where we had 2 amazing kids, and music took a backseat to being a father. Still, after bedtime, I would always work on music quietly till late in the night while they slept (they are currently 6 and 8 and are always playing the drums, piano, and keyboards scattered around the studio and house). After trying out a myriad of local studios a few times and just not fully connecting or getting the results I heard in my head and on the records that moved me, I started self-recording my various projects and mixing the music myself. Throughout all the ups and downs, I met some amazing people from all over that I had connected with, made meaningful music with, and was influenced by or influenced. And I’m very thankful for all of it. Fast forward to 2019, I got serious about building my recording rig, did tons of research, reached out to friends in the field, and generally dove deep and experimented with lots of different workflows and setups for recording a full band, really focusing on getting amazing sounds at the source, in the room with the recording chain and instruments before any digital processing happened. The philosophy is if you start with something great, it can be enhanced with all the goodies we have today during the mixing and mastering stages to make the production the best it can be.
Around this time, I began again writing music with my, at this point, lifelong musical partner and best friend, Derek Webb. We were working hard on a band we’d call Braillecloud, and in 2020 just before the pandemic hit, my father passed suddenly, the blow I thought I couldn’t handle; additionally, my Marriage fell apart, and covid hit all in the same month. And it seemed all was lost. The world was completely different, seemingly overnight, in more than a few ways. But again, through the encouragement, love, and help of friends and family, and with music as an outlet, I found a way forward. Derek and our drummer Barrett Toole, all friends since high school, had unique, concurrent life events that led us all together again, all sharing in losses but helping each other out of them at the same time. We hit the creative shed to work on finishing writing, recording the braillecloud album, finally releasing it, and finding our way up again in the process. Today, the many disciplines and lessons all come together to make what I do at Teal Sweater Sounds possible. My perspective on life and music can help contribute to more creation and recording of rad and challenging art into the world!
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
My overall story is my challenge but also my strength. Losing my parents relatively young and never being able to settle fully with all the constant changes in the quality and consistency of living situations made it hard to feel grounded in my younger years. Still, I made the best of that by being very adaptive and appreciative. Aware that nothing is promised. And once I became an adult, out on my own, I ensured I had a more solid grounding. Outside of that, ADHD has also made certain aspects of being a person difficult, but I’ve found ways to work with my tendencies; lists are a big helper in my life. Many challenges point me to the same places, adaptability and perspective. I’m always trying to zoom out when things get rough, continue forward to integrate the lessons and keep doing what brings me joy.
Thanks – so, what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I’ve been playing in bands and writing songs since middle school; It’s always been a healthy and natural place to put my feelings, questions, realizations, interactions, stories, thoughts, and energy into. You can listen to and purchase (mostly name-your-own-price) my albums on their respective Bandcamp pages listed here.
https://braillecloud.bandcamp.com/
https://thinguins.bandcamp.com/
https://prinzejr.bandcamp.com/
https://friends.bandcamp.com/
https://future1983.bandcamp.com/
The projects had grown from the very frenetic early albums released when I was in my late teens and early twenties, very math rock/jazz oriented, into a still mathy but have been leaning more into the songwriting side of things, letting the instruments take an active backseat driver position to the songs as opposed to a hijacking scenario lol. Musically, I’m influenced by a super wide range of artists and styles. Here’s a Lil sample of bands I’ve been obsessed with at one point or another, Tears for Fears, The Police, King Crimson, Tera Melos, The Beatles, The Zombies, the Strokes, Django Reinhart, The Beach Boys, Most anything the Kinsellas do (OWLS and Make Belief up top), Celestial Shore, Pat Metheny, D’angelo, Outkast, Classical like Chopin and Bach, More Electronic artists like Baths, Aphex Twin. Lately, I can’t stop listening to Remi Wolff and Dijon. There’s just so much good stuff out there it’s wild, and I love it!
Lately, I’ve been building and investing in teal sweater sounds, my recording, and the growth of my production business so I can aid artists in realizing and producing their musical creations! I have focused on creating a solid, acoustically treated, creative space with top-quality mics, preamps, instruments, and processing to capture the most honest and true-to-life performances possible. I’ve been honing my musical skills for over 20 years, with over 15 in production and recording, which has been the primary focus of my musical development for some time. I enjoy helping artists hone and manifest their creativity and vision just as much as I like producing my own! I’m happy to put in the time, work and attention to detail to bring the music into the world as accurately as possible, My rates are affordable, and the results are exceptional! I’m here for all musical needs from engineering, production, mixing, mastering, instrument repair and set up, live sound, session playing, lessons for guitar, bass, and drums, and pretty much anything else to do with audio and music. I’m your guy!
We all have different ways of looking at and defining success. How do you define success?
I’m fortunate enough that even though we didn’t have much while growing up, my parents instilled in me that it was I who defined the success in my own life and that being happy was finding where you fit best in any given endeavor. , I’ve had no shortage of interests, but art and music have been paramount from my first memories and have always been a medium that gives me a sense of accomplishment. Even if I improvise a tune, jamming alone, it’s not recorded and disappears forever after I play it. I can enjoy interacting with and culling something interesting and temporarily tangible from the silence. I feel incredibly Blessed and successful in my life, not because of physical things, or even what I’ve done or am capable of, but because of the wonderful people my life’s path have led me to, My two Boys Jazz and Olyver, my amazing fiancé’ Haley, my bands/best friends, my family, and anyone who I can help feel comfortable being their true selves, and vice versa! It’s interacting with like-minded people, not necessarily like-minded people, but those who learn and positively challenge each other and play with ideas and reality together. And respect that we all have our offerings, love, and strengths to give the world, and combing them in interesting and conducive ways is where the true collaborative magic happens. I’ve had to work and build everything I have from scratch more than once. And I’m content with a relatively simple life. I work to give my kids the best life I can while enjoying all that there is while I’m here! Success is lovingly living your life and feeling like you’re doing what you love, where you need to be; even in small moments, it’s more than worth the effort to get to know yourself well enough so you can drop yourself into more situations where you feel like that. I know it is impossible for everyone, and I acknowledge a great deal of luck, despite specks of misfortune, that led me to where I am. I think being appreciative of that helps me continue and strengthens the work I’m willing to put in to be my best self.
Pricing:
- Studio time $40/hr
- Mixing $80 per song
- Mastering $35 per song
- Small/medium event live sound $50/hr
- Guitar/Bass/Production Lessons $45/hr
Contact Info:
- Instagram: instagram.com/tealsweatersounds
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@tealsweatersounds
Image Credits
Charlie Shuck Justin Cooler
