User:Strellj

The Imports
Joe Strell began his musical career in 1980 as songwriter and bassist for The Imports, one of Chicago's first punk bands, which was named after their favorite section in the Wax Trax record bins. The Imports entertained local audiences with their dark minimalism, playing the intimate circuit of alternative dance clubs of the day including Ann Arkees, Tuts, Ruts, Waves, Gaspar's, Huey's, Jamie's Elsewhere, and the Lucky Number. The final lineup of the Imports consisted of Ben Krug (vocals), Tom Krug (guitar), Joe Strell (bass), and Tom Wall (drums).

The Imports released a 7" vinyl single on Cirkle records consisting of the songs "side one" and "side two", which remains an obscure cult favorite and has gone through multiple printings. For their penultimate show on December 4th, 1980, they opened for The Jim Caroll Band at Sammie's in Minneapolis, a date they followed by headlining the next evening at the neighboring 7th Street Entry. After sharing the night with friends from Chicago in a cramped (but warm) hotel room in freezing downtown Minneapolis, The Imports found their separate ways home through the blinding snow of a Midwestern blizzard.

¡Ack-Ack!
In the fall of 1981 Strell left Chicago for Champaign, Illinois, where he joined up with the new wave, art rock band ¡Ack-Ack!,. This band, known for its eclectic compositions and flair for costumes, released 7" and 12" singles and contributed to a number of cassette compilations on the small, independent Office Records label. Playing out in local clubs several times a month for a couple years, Strell developed a talent for melodic Rickenbacker bass lines that became his trademark. The lineup for ¡Ack-Ack! consisted of Steve Shields (vocals), Lynn Canfield (keyboards), Henry Frayne (guitar), Joe Strell (bass), and Brendan Gamble (drums). Previous band members include Tim Stephens (guitar) and Brian Reedy (drums), who went on to form the power alternative trio Lonely Trailer.

Split Heavens
During the period when he was playing bass for ¡Ack-Ack!, Strell built Dansbane Elandet Studios as an additional outlet for his creativity, and launched Split Heavens, which he would use as the primary vehicle for his solo and collaborative efforts over the next two decades. The independent label Office Records released "Stronger than the Rain" (1986) and "Hydraulic Angel Hymns" (1988), both of which were album-length cassettes. Strell also contributed his skills as bassist to recordings by The Arms of Someone New, TX ST Mexico, and Club Crack, produced recordings for Club Crack, and engineered/produced several recordings for Lonely Trailer that were later released on Mud Records.

Sylvia Darling
When "¡Ack-Ack!" broke up in the winter of 1986, bassist Strell and drummer Brendan Gamble combined their creativity in a studio project they called Sylvia Darling, culminating in the release of an album-length cassette entitled "Sand Dancing" (1988) on Office Records. This collaboration lasted until 1989, when Strell left Champaign to move to New York City in search of Polish diner's and yellow taxicabs. Meanwhile, fellow "¡Ack-Ack!" alumni Henry Frayne, Lynn Canfield and Brendan Gamble formed The Moon Seven Times (M7X), whose debut CD release on Third Mind Records features Joe Strell on bass, as well as a credit for "train sounds and glasses".

Joe Strell - Solo Artist
After leaving New York in May of 1995, Strell moved to San Francisco where he re-established the Dansbane Elandet recording studio and record label. In 2005 he released Under a Mackeral Sky, a somber CD comprising thirteen acoustic tracks. He followed this release in December 2006 with the release of Enormous Morning, a less melancholy but still acoustic collection of original tracks.

Category:Folk musicians Category:Folk rock Category:Rock music Category:Indie music Category:Chicago musical groups