Telling Secrets to Strangers is the first full-length record by rock band

Rock Band

Rock Band is a music video game developed by Harmonix Music Systems, published by MTV Games and Electronic Arts. It is the first title in the Rock Band series. The PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions were released in the United States on November 20, 2007, while the PlayStation 2 version was...

 Self Against City

Self Against City

Self Against City is a pop rock band from Sacramento, California best known for their single "The Process." They formed in 2004 and were the first band to sign to Rushmore Records...

, released on January 9, 2007 via Drive-Thru Records

Drive-Thru Records

Drive-Thru Records, established in 1996, was a California-based record label owned by siblings Richard and Stefanie Reines. It has produced various pop punk bands, many with a distinct SoCal sound....

' Rushmore

Rushmore Records

Rushmore Records was formerly a subsidiary of Drive-Thru Records. As of September, 2006, Rushmore became an Imprint label due to the project being largely unsuccessful.-History:...

 imprint. Preceded by the self-produced EP

Extended play

An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...

 Take It How You Want It

Take It How You Want It

Take It How You Want It is the debut EP of Self Against City. A print run of 400 advance copies was released by 720 Records at one of the band's concerts at The Boardwalk in Orangevale, California on October 28, 2004...

(2005), the album marks the first time the band worked with a record producer

Record producer

A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...

. It was recorded within seventeen days throughout April 2006 by the five founding members, two of which (bassist

Bassist

A bass player, or bassist is a musician who plays a bass instrument such as a double bass, bass guitar, keyboard bass or a low brass instrument such as a tuba or sousaphone. Different musical genres tend to be associated with one or more of these instruments...

 Patrick O'Connor and drummer

Drummer

A drummer is a musician who is capable of playing drums, which includes but is not limited to a drum kit and accessory based hardware which includes an assortment of pedals and standing support mechanisms, marching percussion and/or any musical instrument that is struck within the context of a...

 Chris Trombley) left the group weeks after the completion of the mixing process in June 2006.

The artwork and packaging of the album is somewhat unique, as it's flipped horizontally. Unlike conventional U.S.

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 CDs and books, the spine is located on the right, meaning that both the case and the booklet open to the right. While most of the liner notes

Liner notes

Liner notes are the writings found in booklets which come inserted into the compact disc jewel case or the equivalent packaging for vinyl records and cassettes.-Origin:...

 read ordinarily, the lyrics to "Talking to the Mirror" are written in mirror writing

Mirror writing

Mirror writing is formed by writing in the direction that is the reverse of the natural way for a given language, such that the result is the mirror image of normal writing: it appears normal when it is reflected in a mirror. It is sometimes used as an extremely primitive form of cipher...

.

In a lyric feature for PlayPro.com written by Jack Matranga, the inspiration for the lyrical content of Telling Secrets to Strangers came from personal experiences and observing the lives of those around him.

Track listing

(all songs written by Jonathan Temkin & Jack Matranga)

1. "Becoming a Monster
   Becoming a Monster
   "Becoming a Monster" is the first single from Self Against City from their debut album Telling Secrets to Strangers.-Music video:The single's music video was posted by the band on MySpace on March 5, 2007. The video was filmed partially in Yuba City, CA. It begins with the members of the band ...
   
   " – 2:38
2. "Stroke of Luck" – 3:06
3. "Ready and Willing" – 2:52
4. "Even the Strong Won't Survive" – 2:43
5. "Disappearing Act" – 3:24
6. "Tequila Moonlight" – 4:18
7. "Talking to the Mirror" – 3:03
8. "You Got It" – 3:25
9. "Smooth Silver" – 2:38
10. "Yours Isn't the First" – 3:59
11. "Back to Our Innocence" – 3:49

Credits

• Jeff LaTour – guitar
  Guitar
  The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
  
  , vocals
• Jack Matranga – guitar, vocals, keys
  Keyboard instrument
  A keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
  
  
• Jonathan Temkin – vocals, guitar
• Patrick O'Connor – bass
  Bass guitar
  The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
  
  
• Chris Trombley – drums
  Drum kit
  A drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....