The Warehouse Tapes
The 1995 "Bat Signal"
Released in 1995 during the band's "Wilderness Era," this EP was the official rebirth of The Stardust Engine.
Recorded in their Blacksburg warehouse ("The Fortress") and funded entirely by the "Forger Nation War Chest," this album was a complete rejection of their polished Apex past. Fueled by the "ocean of rage" from the 1994 Friction trial, the band finally unleashed their true identity.
*Originally sold as a mail-order only Cassette and CD via TheStardustEngine.com.
Tracklist & Lyrics
Liner Notes & Lore
Side A: The Engine (Rage & Redemption)
"I am the static! I am the noise!" The declaration of the Freedom Era. A direct rejection of the "hollow sound" Apex forced them to make.
Ryan's raw, "jangle rock" rage track. It retells the infamous "dirty mirror" incident from the 1992 Friction photo shoot ("It was just dust! It was just a lie!"), channeling his anger at the executive who humiliated him.
After the "Tabloid Hell" of the trial, the media tried to paint Cassidy as a "Victim-Saint." This fierce, "Pat Benatar-style" arena anthem is her rejection of that narrative: "I am not your victim / I am not your saint."
The only surviving track from the canceled 1992 Friction sessions. The band wrote it about a literal space shuttle re-entry ("Here comes the friction / Feel the fire"), but the "rogue" label executive misinterpreted it as a sexual metaphor.
The epic closer of Side A. An arena-rock tribute to the "Ironheads" and CPI alumni who funded their freedom. "You built a place to hide from the storm / You are the shield!"
Side B: The Stardust (Ad Astra)
The 15-minute progressive rock epic that consumes the entirety of Side B.
Channeling the band's love for prog rock, this suite details Cassidy's psychological journey from the "Cage" of the trial to the "Cosmos" of freedom. It is the band's most complex work, featuring the movements: I. The Cage, II. Ignition, III. The Cosmos, and IV. Re-entry.
