Album Notes

About Elephants:
Elephants won Calvin College's 2009 Festival of Faith and Art's Bandspotting Competition:
"This is the clear winner. The singing is heartfelt, honest and highly unique…a voice of earnest longing. The production is highly original and simultaneously melodic and aggressive when need be. It is rare that I hear such clearly communicated Gospel music that is soulful, articulate and adventurous." -Michael Kaufmann, Asthmatic Kitty Records and Andy Whitman, Paste Magazine and Christianity Today.

“The album title is fitting as most tracks are interlaced with deep drum stomps, rough-skinned backing loops and
Aaron’s own trumpet. The sound is experimental, but with purpose, folk rock based but uniquely integrated with
a variety of instrumentation; it carries an element of abstraction to it with soul that bleeds through the vocals...and with the strength of an Elephant, you were going to be moved whether you originally wanted to or not.”
-Justin Boyer, Relevant Magazine

"'Elephants' is an acoustic smorgasbord of spiritual musings with prophetic and operatic overtones that insist on being listened to again and again to be fully understood and appreciated. There is weeping and wailing-- literally--amidst shouts and cries of joy." -Kris Rasmussen, Beliefnet


About Aaron:
Aaron Strumpel lives in a bursted bubble. His heart drips empathy for the freedom and revelation of fellow saints and sinners. Elephants, his new self-released recording is the first in a series of song collections where he has devoted himself to singing in the voices of these forgotten people. So, muster up your courage and sit with them for a spell and let their groanings soften you. There’s life to be found in the passed-over cast-offs, and he won’t stop until you have heard them. These recordings chronicle a gathering strengh, a force to reckoned with, a rumbling preamble to coming stampede, a survival of the ones deemed unfit.

His past endeavors have informed his current direction: a collaborator with inspirational collective, Enter the Worship Circle, fellow songwriter/performer with Tracy Howe’s Restoration Project, a contributing artist to Brian McLaren’s “Everything Must Change” tour, fellow Agent of Future with Todd and Angie Fadel at the 2009 Greenbelt Festival and tourmate with John Mark McMillan on a benefit tour to help supply clean drinking water for people in developing nations.