L.a. Band Hello Stranger Releases New Single “True Belief”

Los Angeles band Hello Stranger’s ‘stellar’ title track, “True Belief” from their forthcoming EP, is about the commodification of rebellion.

Hello Stranger was formed in a dusty Los Angeles rehearsal studio in 2015. After moving to L.A., Sam Deffenbaugh (singer/guitarist) was joined by acclaimed musicians Alex Monfort (Kenny Y Los Electricos, Kenny Aviles), Doug Slohm (The Alpine Camp), and Dillon Yoder (All Access, Shiver, Faultline). Hello Stranger released their debut record, “Long Division”, with producer Jon Lundin in January 2018. The album has now received over 1 million combined streams. In September 2021, they followed up their debut with Social Dissonance. 2022 brings the “True Belief EP”as the band continues to write/record their next full-length album.

‘I was inspired after seeing Che Guevara shirts for sale at popular, conservative retailers. It’s infuriating to see historical figures and artists decontextualized – from Joe Strummer or MLK Jr.,’ explains Sam Deffenbaugh (vocals/guitars/keys). ‘”True Belief” calls out these hypocrisies.’

On the heels of 2021’s Social Dissonance, this year brings the 3 song “True Belief EP”, born out of the pandemic. ‘We had these incredibly topical, salient songs we had been working on for months, but it was difficult to get into studios or collaborate with producers,’ recalls Sam. ‘As many other artists did during that time, we decided to do it ourselves.’

It became a turning point for Hello Stranger, their first self-engineered and produced effort. ‘We were liberated; able to make music when and where we wanted, to say all the things that we knew were important to say, and to freely pursue our musical inclinations wherever they might lead.’

“True Belief EP” will be available August 26, 2022.