Strange Days: Dr. Strangely Strange on Music Then and Now

As the legendary Dr. Strangely Strange prepares to release their highly anticipated fourth album, Anti-Inflammatory, in April 2025, Think Like A Key Music had the privilege of catching up with founding members Tim Booth and Ivan Pawle. Joined by Tim Goulding and violinist Joe Thoma for the recording, the band is set to deliver a collection that blends their signature charm with contemporary sonic touches. Their journey spans decades, from their debut Kip of the Serenes (1969, Island Records) to Heavy Petting (1970, Vertigo) and Alternative Medicine (1997, Ace Records).

Now, nearly 30 years after their last release, they’re back with a new chapter. We spoke to Tim Booth and Ivan Pawle about their creative process, the challenges of releasing music across different eras, and the role of technology in shaping their art.

Looking Back: You’ve released albums across three distinct eras—1969/70, 1997, and now 2025. What’s the biggest difference in releasing music today compared to those earlier times? Does all the modern technology make things easier, or does it come with its own challenges?

• Tim Booth: "These days releasing an album is a much smoother operation than it was when The Doctors first recorded in 1969. Way back, pre-internet and pre-digital, events moved much more slowly. The actual recording process took about the same amount of time, but the gaps between takes were longer and the subsequent post-production took forever."
• Ivan Pawle: "We didn’t get around to releasing a single back in the days of vinyl; it just never would have occurred to us. Moreover, had we ventured there, we would probably have been marketed as a novelty act, and possibly been obliged to 'camp-it-up.' In which case we would undoubtedly have lost our identity!"
• Tim Booth: "1997 was a slicker time with digital tech dominant in most recording studios, but Strangelys decided to record analogue, only the mixing and mastering being digital, and - of course - the procedures were costly and still took forever, because we were all in on it and everyone wanted their say in the process."
• Ivan Pawle: "Much easier now - starting out we had to lug P.A. and amplifiers up and down the highways and byways."
• Tim Booth: "2024 and modern tech coupled with the immaculate bedside manner of Brian Casey and Sarah O'Mahony in Wavefield Studio made the recording process a great pleasure and during the post-production process Brian sent us files of each mix as he went along, so we could get back to him with reasonably well-reasoned comments and he could - very reasonably - reason them into or out of the mixes; a much easier and slicker process which now seems to have been absolutely seamless."

The Studio Experience: The new album was recorded with Brian Casey at Wavefield Studios. How did that collaboration come about? What was the recording process like? How many sessions did it take to bring the album to life?

• Tim Booth: "The grapevine had whispered that there was a good studio near Clonakilty, where my partner Doris Knoebel has a house, so Autumn 2023 I took a little trip over and checked it out, meeting with Brian and Sarah and scoping out the studio. I liked what I saw and was especially taken with both of the principals, so on reporting back to the Strangelys, we booked and took it from there."
• Ivan Pawle: "The location beside the river plus a very relaxed architectural space enabled us to play as if at home. The whole job took the band three or four days."
• Tim Booth: "We did two sets of recording, firstly four days in winter and then two days this autumn and it was a great pleasure for us all. We would lay down a basic live track with whoever had written the song singing and playing and the other two original members adding as required and Brian on bass. Drums and percussion were then dropped on and Joe added fiddle, viola and mandolin, vocals were polished, harmonies added, and if moved, Brian added Tele. There was a lot of laughter."

Favorite Tracks: Each of you brings something unique to the table. What’s your personal favorite song from the new album, and why?

• Tim Booth: "Don't really have a favourite. It varies every time I listen, but I do like the contrast between the more uptempo full band items and the pared-down 'simplicity' of tracks such as 'Morning Song'. When I listen to the album, I definitely hear Dr. Strangely Strange."
• Ivan Pawle: "A bit like choosing a favourite child, of my own numbers I like 'Back in the Day' best - simple and catchy. Unintentionally, a tiny touch of Buffalo Springfield seems to have crept in."

AI and Art: The album incorporates AI art in its inner sleeve design and the music video for 'Baby Bunting' (courtesy of Think Like A Key Music). With both Tim Booth and Tim Goulding being professional artists, what are your thoughts on this new technology? Does it inspire you, or does it feel like a challenge to traditional artistry?

• Tim Booth: "For some time now, I have been trying to incorporate AI into my graphic work with varied degrees of success and some degree of apprehension as well as considerable opposition from fellow artists. I wanted to try to give my songs - which are story songs - an image that would represent the mood of the piece and AI seemed to be a way to go. It took a while to persuade the software to do as I wanted. I made dozens of images before I achieved one that was getting towards what I had in mind."
• Ivan Pawle: "Pandora’s Box… It certainly works well with 'Baby Bunting.' Talk to Tim Booth about auto-tune!"
• Tim Booth: "Sometimes AI images bring me out in a rash, other times they niggle the subconscious in a proto-artistic manner, but I believe the end result is only acceptable if there is a thoughtful and empathetic human hand guiding the process."

The Recording Evolution: On a similar note to the first question, do you find the recording process itself easier or more complicated now compared to the earlier albums? What modern tools or techniques did you embrace this time around, and were there any you purposely avoided to keep the sound authentic?

• Ivan Pawle: "Kip of the Serenes - Needless to say, our earliest experiences in Sound Techniques were challenging by virtue of our own callow selves: no reflection on Joe Boyd or on the engineers, who treated us cordially and with respect. Heavy Petting - The album was recorded in 2/3 different sessions, including studios in Dublin, so it lacks the overall cohesion of the others. Alternative Medicine - We were quite well rehearsed and had a very enjoyable few days over at the studio in Ballyvourney, with our old friend Paul Scully producing and an excellent engineer Bruno Staehelin, also a mighty drummer."
• Tim Booth: "Without doubt, the recording process has become easier for the musician, and - perhaps - for the engineers and the recording companies. TLAK have treated us with empathy and respect throughout the entire production and we, as a band, are delighted to be working with them."
• Ivan Pawle: "I am a fully qualified techno dunce!"
• Tim Booth: "But, there is an elephant in the digital room: an elephant of such enormity and grossness that it blocks all the light from the windows. Windows that used to shed their financial brightness into every corner of the creative process and allow artists to flourish. And the name of this monster? Streaming services. Their greed and their derisive payments to the artists from whom they milk their disproportionate profits really needs to be addressed."

Anti-Inflammatory is out April 11th on vinyl, CD and that damned streaming platforms.