Brisbane progressive rock/metal outfit The Stranger have released the title track for their upcoming second album, "Kaleidoscope".


The band has gone from strength to strength in the last 18 months, not only winning over a new legion of fans musically, but also winning the Brisbane Heat of the Wacken Battle of the Bands as well as signing recently to Octane Records and Wild Thing Records.


Guitarist Kalen Austin sat down with HEAVY in a rural setting (hence the animal noises invading the interview) to discuss the single and more.


"This song was one of those rare times when I sat down and all the music came out in one go," he explained. "It was one of those wonderful moments where inspiration sort of started and didn't stop and I just clung on for dear life and the whole song finished itself in a very short space of time. I was very happy about that (laughs). Essentially this one started off as an acoustic thing and basically once I had the first couple of chords of the acoustic intro the rest of the song just sort of built itself in my head as I went. It was very, very satisfying to write and it was one of those rare times that I was able to take a complete idea from start to finish to the band and say here's the new song all done."


In the full interview, Kalen talks about the song lyrically, the upcoming album, signing to a major label, their sound and how it came together, how COVID specifically impacted The Stranger and more.