Omnidirectional is the latest record from The Schramms. The album came after a long hiatus but the band returned to the scene with a renewed vigor and sense of purpose. On this installment of Liberty Music, Dave Schramm of The Schramms delved into the new record, the return to form, and the history of The Schramms.
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For fans to receive the record as they have would presumably be a euphoric feeling for the members. To hear Dave describe it though, there was more of sense of calm that swept over them. Schramm said, “Well it’s a big relief. It’s actually nice that there are so many people who haven’t forgotten all about us. We haven’t been out presenting music to anybody for quite some time. Either live or on CD.”
Things seamlessly clicked for the lads despite a near-decade apart from one another. Dave Schramm stated, “We hadn’t rehearsed in like eight years since we were recording the record. So Ron and Al and I got together the first time and it was kind of like riding a bicycle. Even stuff we hadn’t played in all that time kind of gelled pretty quickly.” He continued “It’s taken so long to get the thing finished. We always planned to put it out as soon as it was finished. Even after the point we were finished, there was a lot of things to do to get back in contact with people who put it out for us. It was a long process.”
The Schramms
The hiatus lent itself to crafting a wholly new record. One that has no linear sense of building from the album that came before it. It got the band out of that period of each prior record informing the next one that gets dropped in two years. Schramm quipped, “At this point, a unique snapshot. Because when we were doing an album every two years or so back in the 90’s, there was a certain amount of continuity. The last studio album that came out was 1998. Not really a case of what we’ve just done being informed by something that went before. Just because there’s so many new directions on it. It’s really a step into some new territory.”
The Hoboken music scene was supremely influential in the band carving out their reputation. The scene also lent itself to the band reaching a tightness in their playing. Not just that but a level of familiarity with each other that a near-decade apart couldn’t throw off. Dave Schramm said, “It’s great to have so many creative, musical friends in the same community. We used to play softball every Sunday with Yo La Tengo and The Individuals. Even later on when it became more fragmented there was still a sense of we were from a certain time and place, I guess.”
Omnidirectional
Distribution for the latest record will be done through Bar None domestically and Blue Rose in Europe. The Schramms don’t have the ability to tour extensively right now but there’s an idea to tour Europe and the States in 2020.
Dave Schramm’s efforts as a session guitarist have also paid dividends in taking his playing to a new level and informing The Schramms music in unique ways. Schramm stated, “I think it always helps to have different challenges and horizons. Being asked to do something that’s maybe not in your comfort zone is always a good spur to finding new sounds. A the same time the playing as a hired gun or a session guy is just all….there’s not much stress involved. Playing with other people is stress-free, joyous, and wonderful. A different kind of joy, a different kind of completion playing my own music.”
Schramm also got similar benefits from Radio Free Song Club. A communal gathering of songwriting heavyweights who are having fun while helping one another improve/ try out new things. He said, “That was hugely important to open one’s mind to different things. Artists would bring in songs to play that were quite different than what I had been used to.”
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