equiliberation.com: Standard Deviation
Standard Deviation: Abnormally Normal or Normally Abnormal?
“Most new bands record a demo, but you guys made The White Album....”
– Howard Karp, engineer/co-producer of ANONA?
Looking to purchase Abnormally Normal or Normally Abnormal?
You can download the entire 15-song CD from CDBaby for $4.99 or purchase the actual physical CD for $7.99 + shipping. You can also purchase individual tracks for $0.99 each.
If you are in the mood to spend more than $4.99 to download Abnormally Normal or Normally Abnormal?, you can purchase it from the iTunes Music Store for $9.99. As usual, individual tracks are available for purchase on iTunes for $0.99 each.
Standard Deviation: The Story
Fred Schwab and Frank Esquer formed Standard Deviation in 1994 when they were students at Musicians Institute in Hollywood, California. The two were playing guitars in a practice room when Fred began playing a rock chord progression he had written. Frank improvised a rock lead over the progression, but when Fred came to a break, Frank filled the silence with a goofy country lick. At that moment, Fred knew he had found a kindred musical spirit, and Standard Deviation was born.
Over the course of the year they attended MI together, Fred, Frank, and various rhythm sections performed as Standard Deviation numerous times. They were well received in two MI Battle of the Bands competitions, and they were selected to participate in the year-end graduation performance. After graduation, the two headed into the Musicians Institute studios with sound engineer/instructor Howard Karp and began laying down the tracks that comprise Abnormally Normal or Normally Abnormal?
Due to tight finances and Fred’s move back to his home in San Antonio, Texas, recording proceeded intermittently over a period of a year-and-a-half. However, in the summer of 1997, Abnormally Normal or Normally Abnormal? was finally complete. Both Fred and Frank were extremely pleased with the results.
Although the 1400 miles between Fred’s and Frank’s homes spelled the end of Standard Deviation as an active band, the musical achievement of Abnormally Normal or Normally Abnormal? remains. In the years since 1997, Fred has performed solo acoustic versions of many of the songs on the CD. Furthermore, in 1999, under the aegis of Standard Deviation, he tracked "Welcome to the Millennium," a recording receiving its first public exposure through equiliberation.com.
In 2006, Fred formed a new band, Equiliberation, with his twin nephews Elliott Ash and Ryan Ash. Based in Austin, Texas, the trio’s repertoire includes the Standard Deviation songs “The Hillbilly Soliloquy,” “Rescue,” “Firewalker,” and "Welcome to the Millennium."