Energized by a spring 2019 reunion show followed by a massive trio of retrospective CD reissues that summer, Inner Strength guitarist Joe Marselle and vocalist Scott Oliva remained interested in creating new music. Inspired in large part by propelling Inner Strength's late-'80s/early-'90s progressive metal roots into the present, Marselle began putting together new compositions, for which Oliva then crafted melodies and lyrics, stating, "I approached this as if it were the next chapter in our time together as a band from the early days. I leave the lyrics open to self-analyzation, with the exception of a few songs I had specific ideas for." The duo teamed up with drummer Eric Sanders (Daath, Stuck Mojo, etc.), and Inner Strength bassist Justin Hosman eventually agreed to take time aside from his new group, Maya's Fist, to participate in the recordings. It was decided to concoct a band name and visual aesthetic equally inspired by Inner Strength. Named after a song on the group's lone 1993 album, Shallow Reflections, the new project was christened SUNRISE DREAMER. Marselle clarifies, "For some time, Scott and I considered calling this project Inner Strength. However, we concluded that if and when a new Inner Strength album was released, it would have to be the four original band members working on the music together, the way we had in the past. Otherwise, it just wouldn't be authentic enough to us." With much of the music having been composed throughout 2019, recording commenced during the pandemic in 2020-each member sharing files back and forth while handling their own recordings at their respective in-home studios, and Eric tracking drums with the help of Vaylor Trucks (son of the legendary Butch Trucks from The Allman Brothers Band, etc.). Hosman completed the bass tracks and mix by December of 2020, and the 10-song/50-minute result-A World to Know-was released digitally on January 1, 2021. Hearing that the material remained so amazingly true to the artists' original vision of technical and melodic progressive metal with tactfully soaring vocals and well-focused songwriting, Divebomb Records worked out a deal with SUNRISE DREAMER to rescue the album from digital-only despair for a proper CD release, slated for the summer of 2021. A World to Know is sure to suit any fan of the genre with its complex yet memorable structures that achieve a seamless balance between melody and force.
