Strangers is Jon Riley and Nathanael Hoffman, who also happen to be cousins. Jon and Nathanael's fathers met in college, moved together to Marin County, California to attend seminary, married sisters, and started a church called Church of the Open Door. Jon was born in 1980 in San Francisco. Nathanael came along four years later, in London, where his family had moved to start another Open Door church.

From a young age Jon and Nathanael both enjoyed making noise. At some point their noise began to resemble music. Jon toured and recorded as a solo folk act through his early 20s. Nathanael, who managed to learn drums, bass, piano, and guitar simultaneously as a kid, played in various bands during his college years in London.

Nathanael returned to Marin after college, burned out and spiritually adrift, just as Jon was beginning to explore worship music. Jon had always been turned off by the prospect of writing "church" music, but a recent breakup had devastated him enough to reconsider. The two started working on recordings that would become a first album - an ecclectic experimentation in spacey, folky, deeply personal worship music. Strangers was born.

In October of 2010 Jon and Nathanael began recording material for their current album, Horizons. For two and a half years, every Saturday and free moment was conscripted for the sake of the album. It was life giving at times and grueling at others. Their friendship, common vision, and celebration pints sustained them through the process. Recording finally wrapped in May of 2013, but it took another year to see the album take its final form, mixed by Jeremy Edwardson, mastered by Jonathan Berlin, and beautifully packaged by Andrew Ruiz.

At the heart of Strangers is a brotherly bond between two men and their passion to see people experience God's loving presence through music. If that happens for you as you listen, praise God. He is the giver of all good things.

Produced and recorded by Strangers
Mixed by Jeremy Edwardson
Mastered by Jonathan Berlin
Photography and design by Andrew Ruiz
All songs written by Jon Riley.
(C) 2014 Captain Ahab Music