Strange Coalition is a music project created by Jim Fini—an eclectic but powerful blend of rock, blues, folk, country, reggae, and cinematic textures. It brings together diverse musical styles into a single evolving voice—layered, melodic, and driven by something just beneath the surface. Here we will explore wide-ranging themes across science, spirituality, history, civics, and love—along with the simple idea that sometimes music should just be about having a good time. If you’re drawn to music that feels expansive, big-picture, and just outside the expected path, you’re in the right place.

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Time Travel

This song was inspired by the Nat Geo series Genius, where Geoffrey Rush brings Einstein to life in a way that feels both human and otherworldly. It sparked a simple but unsettling idea—what if time isn’t something we move through, but something that moves through us?

Time Travel is an attempt to fuse art with the language of quantum mechanics, where the boundaries between past, present, and future begin to blur. Physics suggests that time travel may be theoretically possible. But even more intriguing is the possibility that it’s already happening—not as a machine, but as a pattern.

There’s an old idea, attributed to Zoroaster: Every event is re-enacted from the past. Whether taken literally or metaphorically, it raises a deeper question—are we living something new, or remembering something we’ve already lived?

This track sits at the edge of that question. Not as an answer, but as a signal.

We Are Not Alone

Across ancient civilizations—from India and Japan to Egypt and the Inca—there are stories of beings from the sky. Creator gods. Teachers. Watchers. Cultures separated by oceans and time, yet sharing remarkably similar accounts. They built massive, precisely engineered stone monuments in their honor—structures that still challenge our understanding of how they were made.

In the Old Testament, the Book of Genesis describes a time before the flood when angels known as The Watchers lived among humans, imparting knowledge and technology. Centuries later, the prophet Ezekiel writes of being taken into the heavens and returned by what he described as a “wheel in the sky.”

These aren’t just ancient ideas. In April of 1800, scientist William Dunbar reported observing a disk-shaped craft near Baton Rouge and sent his account to Thomas Jefferson, who forwarded it to the American Philosophical Society. More than two centuries later, the U.S. government has acknowledged decades of studying unidentified aerial phenomena, releasing footage that echoes thousands of similar accounts since the end of World War II.

So the question persists.

In 1950, physicist Enrico Fermi asked what is now known as the Fermi Paradox: if the universe is so vast and life so statistically likely, why haven’t we seen definitive proof?

There are many possible answers. Maybe advanced civilizations observe but don’t interfere. Maybe they’ve already been here. Or maybe they never leave—because most civilizations don’t survive long enough to reach the stars.

Technological progress brings power. Nuclear weapons, engineered pathogens, environmental collapse, artificial intelligence—each step forward carries the potential for self-destruction. Intelligence may not guarantee survival.

We Are Not Alone lives in that tension—between evidence and interpretation, between signal and noise. Not as a declaration, but as a question.

One that has been asked for thousands of years.

And may already have an answer.

Picasso

This song came out of watching Genius again—this time the Picasso season, where Antonio Banderas brings Pablo Picasso to life with intensity and contradiction.

Picasso wasn’t just a genius—he was complicated, flawed, and at times destructive. A revolutionary artist who reshaped the visual world, but struggled in the roles that matter most—husband, father, friend.

Picasso sits in that space. The uncomfortable truth that brilliance doesn’t always come with balance—and that creation and chaos often travel together.

United We Stand (Acoustic)

Parts of this song have lived quietly in the background—opening and closing episodes of the Locally Grown podcast—before finding their full voice here.

United We Stand was written during the time I was working on Locally Grown: The Art of Sustainable Government, a period that sharpened my thinking about how communities function—and how easily they fracture.

At its core, the song is a reminder. In moments when division feels loud and constant, it’s easy to forget that most of what defines us is shared. Common ground doesn’t disappear—it just gets buried.

This track leans into that idea. Not as a political statement, but as something more fundamental: the belief that connection is still there, if we’re willing to look for it.

United We Stand (Band)

Here is the full band version of United We Stand. It’s a rocker.

Hurricane Allie

This one is just a boozy rocker that should be played in crowded smoky club. Like me, I think most people have run into some Hurricane Allie’s (or Billy’s) in their lives. Lots of laughs but watch out.

Giddyup (Hurricane Allie Pt. 2)

This is a second tune in the saga of Hurricane Allie who meets Billy and heads out for an adventure shall we say. Bonnie and Clyde got nothin on these two. Giddyup.

Cyrus

I go to Church semi-regularly. It's quiet time to contemplate bigger things than myself. “Why are we here?” kind of stuff. Except for listening to the sermon and the singing, I try to read the Bible quietly. Mostly the Old Testament because it is really an ancient history book. Cyrus the Great, King of Persia is mentioned in a few places as a "good conqueror" because he freed the Jews from their captivity in Babylon when he invaded in 545 BC. I guess its a cautionary tale for our time. Be wary of authoritarians bearing gifts.

The Storm

History has shown consistently that centralization of power eventually collapses under it’s own weight because it becomes a single point of failure. All the kings, fascists, theocrats, bureaucrats and socialists better be right, or the whole society suffers.

In contrast, American republican democracy distributes power, from the bottom-up: local, state and federal, with a constitution that limits federal power. This crowd-sourcing model creates powerful state and local laboratories where the best ideas can flourish and spread.

My song is a rallying cry for the people around the world that are sick of being lied to by their leaders, who demand loyalty while diminishing their freedom, all at the barrel of gun.

Frankenstein’s Love Song

This is a modern take on a gothic classic. Dr. Frankenstein creates a monster he thought would be the perfect human, devoid of the vices that have plagued humanity, that he could control. Instead he created a monster.

This is a cautionary tale for today where politicians and their allies force us to trade our most basic rights in the name of the “collective good.” America has raised the living standards of the average citizen more than any country or empire in history. We need to reject this Faustian bargain totally and forcefully.

Heaven is for Lovers

I don't write many loves songs mostly because that's what most everyone else does. New love, lost love, spurned love, lustful love, strange love. To me, enduring love requires compromise. Putting others needs ahead of yours, and them doing the same for you. Selflessness. It's hard but worth it.

I'll Always Remember

This is a tune written for all the folks who have lost their moms. My mom was a special lady who I will never forget. She has moved on from this life and here’s my tribute to her.

Swift Accelerate

As a singer-songwriter, I try to stay current with new music. I listen to everything. When I am working I usually stream WERS, the best college radio station in America run by Emerson College students in Boston. They play a great mix of new music from young artists and music from my generation. It’s great but I have never heard them play anything by the reigning Queen of Pop, who I was introduced to through my daughter’s playlist. She is immensely talented and successful and worthy of having a song written about her. So here it is.

Market Crash

This one is from my first album, Money, Politics and Old Lovers. Market Crash was written in 1998 in the wake of the collapse of Long-Term Capital Management, a highly leveraged hedge fund that received a $3.6 billion bailout from the Federal Reserve. Big money back then. It’s a cautionary tale that’s more relevant than ever for big centralized government creating incentives for risky behavior for their cronies.

Jesus’ Dog

Our 16 year old dog Rev, is a well-trained border collie that is so cool. He is a fanatical fetcher who will retrieve anything you throw. Loyal and smart. One beautiful day, I was throwing him the tennis ball and I wondered if he could talk, what story he would tell, Then I wondered if Jesus had a dog what story he would tell. Well, this song is the bluegrass story.

Forest and the Trees

This song is done in a traditional blues style, the roots of jazz and rock n roll. It’s about an old man sharing life lessons to a younger man. I guess I was feeling my age a bit when I wrote this.

Off the Grid

Sometimes ya gotta “Say screw it.” Blow off some steam and deal with the consequences tomorrow. This song is about that. Getting lost in the night looking for adventure. You are drawn to a neon sign in a dark alley, leading to a smoky underground night club that is a throwback to the age of Jazz but with a contemporary vibe.

Walkinman

I wrote this song when my wife and I were dating in the last century. She was a huge Stephen King fan but I had never read him so she recommended I start with his first book, The Stand. It was fantastic and very scary. Though I have seen many movies based on Stephen King’s books, The Stand was the only book I read because I couldn’t imagine anything better than that. This song is about the main character, Randall Flagg, aka the Walkinman. The original version never made it to my 1998 album, Money, Politics and Old Lovers. But I’ve recently re-recorded it in a more modern style.