While the verdict is out on whether it's a good or bad coincidence, there's certainly an odd bit of serendipity behind Mark Mallman's new single as it arrives this week amid escalating coronavirus fears.
The song, which he wrote well over a year ago, is called "Quarantined." Uff-da.
"The timing is flipping freaky, but that's that and I'm going with it," said the veteran Twin Cities piano rocker, who's been known to pull off some sly, oddball stunts in his time but wanted to make it clear there's no tomfoolery involved here.
In fact, there's quite a serious story behind the rather manic and punky tune. Mallman said he wrote it about "sequestering myself from nightlife" after giving up alcohol a few years ago. Also, he worked on it and some other songs for his upcoming album with producer Ed Ackerson -- one of the Polara frontman and Flowers studio owner's last projects before his death from cancer in October.
"Obviously when Ed and I mixed this, there was no concept of a global pandemic," Mallman reiterated.
Still, given the current climate, he felt compelled to add a new lyric within the single before releasing this accompanying music video (also in the works for months).
The new line: "Yeah, we're gonna get through it."
