War Strings is the solo project of singer/songwriter Andrew Stogel. From St. Louis, Missouri, Stogel moved to LA and fronted bands; LOVEYOU & Dreamers Dose. Stogel wrote steadily over the last few years, since the release of Who Cares How It Ends, but has yet to share music since then. Stogel writes, “I was slow to move forward as the work is deeply personal, but as I moved away from the material, I now feel like, why not?”

Prelude to Nothing, written, performed, and produced by Stogel between 2019-2021, deals with topics of addiction, heartbreak, and isolation. From the ungraciously harsh opener, “Shame,” to more tempered tracks like “Never Win,” there remain emotional currents of confusion, uncertainty, and unidentified pain. In Stogel’s words “these songs are amplified versions of narrowed feelings or ideas. I wanted to let the lyrics be as untempered, or dramatic, as I’d lt myself at the time.” Stand-out tracks, like “Surreal” and “They Must Want Blood,” highlight that feeling of weakness following heartbreak. “For the most part, this music was written as the height of my seclusion in 2020. Those two songs in particular express that confused, naive wounded feeling concerning lost loves.”

Over the nine-song release, Stogel shares his frailty, sometimes muddled and at other times, intensely clear. More light-hearted tracks like “Sue” and “On My Mind,” outline an ever-present, perceived distance felt in relationships. However, the feed-backing guitars and raucous drums can’t entirely dilute the songs’ more hopeful sentiments. Stogel says, “I feel like this is an older, since healed, but important part of me. It does no good, in a folder on my computer.”

Prelude to Nothing, out March 23rd, is for the few who don’t mind being in the particular dark cloud Stogel concocts.