About
Hello. My name is Dan Lord.
For a long time I was the lead singer/songwriter/frontman for a band called Pain, 
which did pretty well, all things considered: we made CDs, sold them all over the world, got some radio play, did some work for the Cartoon Network and the WB, played shows around the country, and built up a big, raucous fan base, many of whom remain loyal to this day. If you would like more info about all that go here.
It was a pirate’s life for me, as they say–which is a strange thing to say, since pirates traditionally rape, steal and murder. I didn’t rape anyone, or murder anyone, but otherwise much of the whole experience was the great misadventure of the self-serving Artist Who Gives Not A Shit For Anyone But Himself. I was likeable, I was charismatic, I knew how to write a catchy tune and how to perform it effectively on a stage. Big deal. I had no peace, and it showed.
Then I read a phrase by a man who lived seventeen centuries ago—how can anyone that old have anything to say to me? The phrase was: “restless is our heart until it comes to rest in Thee.”
“Thee?” I thought. “Who in the world is Thee?”
I then embarked upon a long, exhausting quest using only the most cutting edge internet search engines and I discovered that “Thee” is, in fact, a synonym for “Jesus,” who was as about as relevant to my life at the time as a pair of reading glasses to a rhesus monkey. Strangely curious, I tracked down and read the book which contained that “our-heart-is-restless” phrase, a book called Confessions, by St. Augustine. The steel trap which had been quivering above me now sprung at last. I was caught.
Now, I’m a Roman Catholic—it says so on this dog-eared blue card in my wallet which someone is supposed to read in case I ever choke on a chicken bone or get trapped beneath a large object. “Roman Catholic,” and I mean it when I say it: a Pope-loving, no-condom-wearing, Rosary-wielding, baby-making fool of the world. I went back to college, got my undergraduate degree, then went on to get my Master’s in Theology. Along the way I got married to Hallie, and together we have spawned countless wee homunculi and built a life that has earned the disapproval of hundreds.
So why is the website called That Strangest of Wars, you ask? Because one of my heroes, Frank Sheed, a theologian from wayyyyy back in the twentieth century, gave a speech in which he declared simply: “The Church on earth is at war.” And he went on to say this:
“…we must understand what the warfare is. It is being fought not simply to enlarge the Church, but to bring souls into union with Christ. It is that strangest of wars which is fought for the enemy, not against him. Even the term enemy must not be allowed to mislead.”
And that, people, is what this website is all about: fighting to
bring souls into union with Christ. I pledge to use music, art, humor, joy and truth in charity as my weapons. All visitors are welcome, no one will be turned away. Feel free to post a comment, or email me at thatstrangestofwars at gmail dot com. Thanks for stopping by. God bless!
Cool story!
Go Dan!
You are one heck of a writer and the blog title is really cool .
Dan, where are you? Brian and I miss you. Would like you to meet our son. Catch up. You can reach me on facebook or jasminemade at austin dot r r dot com.
Email on its way, Jasmine!
I’m a former musician myself. Left my band at the height of recording and touring ’cause I heard God calling me in another direction, and I’m now living and working with a religious order, getting ready to formally enter towards the end of the year.
I write about that strange transition from punk to monk, hence the name of my blog.
Two awesome Victories for the Lamb of God! I see that Homeboy must have entered the Order as his blog is gone! Praised be Jesus Christ now and forever! Ave Maria, Dan+
Keep up the great work Dan! Glad to see you still keep yourself busy! BTW – I just got my copy of “Kokamantratarius” and I’m watching it now, awesome!!! Anyways, take care man!
Dear Mr. Dan,
This is a very important question. There has been something absolutely torturing me about one of Pain’s songs. For years it has tormented me. In Milk during the bridge about Henry Rollins, Pose starts singing different lyrics than you in the background. His lyrics are barely distinguishable. All I hear is at the end he goes “…one day I’ll find out what that means.” And he’s right. One day I will find out what that means. And that day is today! Today will start a new age. The age of understanding what Pose sings in Milk. And please don’t tell me he is singing something like “You can’t hear the words I’m saying one day I’ll find out what that means.” If thats the case I will cry for days on end.
Arigatou,
-QuiZNo from Home School Drop Outs
I’m glad I can do something to relieve your suffering, Stefano. What Pose is singing at that point is:…ready?…here it is….:
“It’s a dog eat dog world every day I find out what that means, woh-ohh, woh-ohhh”
I know….deep, right? Anyway, your quest is over. You may rest in the fields of Elysium. Thanks for writing!
Dan, I am a long time Pain fan and my friend Erin brought me an autographed Wonderful Beef poster a couple of years ago from you (it said “to The Don, from The Dan, Merry Christmas!!!!”) and I wanted to thank you for it. it still hangs on my wall (right in front of me right now). Your music brought me much joy in the past. While I personally am neither a Christian nor a Catholic, I do wish you much luck in your endeavors and in your life. I hope you are doing well!
“Pope-loving, no-condom wearing, Rosary-wielding, baby-making fool.” I like this guy. Especially as a convert myself, who broke the ice at a freshman retreat at the Catholic Campus ministry with “hey, anybody got any good condom stories?”
Dan, you need a Wikipedia entry. Just don’t write your own like this musician did: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonard_Haze
Love ya!
Very entertaining! And take note of this: Leonard writes about filling in for John Bonham who injured his wrist during a show, then plays a half hour solo while Bonham’s wrist is being treated, and afterwards Jimmy Page openly weeps because Leonard can’t be in Led Zeppelin–and yet when I visit the page now all that is no longer available to read! A clear sign that Wikipedia suppresses the truth and is afraid of anything totally awesome. Wikipedia even took off the part about his efforts to cure polio. Fascists.
Love yer blog Dan. Courage & in your face attitude. John the Baptist? Please read my blog. I’d love to hear what you think.
Peace,
Rich
http://www.richlifeandpeace.wordpress.com
Dan I just wanna say your awesome. I got into pain when I was younger after seeing the Jabber-jaw short you guys did for cartoon network (before it sucked)
Since then I’ve been a fan.
Regards, Rick.
Hi dan! Your email account,is it legit? I keep getting red flags when I try to mail you.
That’s wierd–it is legit, and I receive emails pretty regularly. just type: thatstrangestofwars and then the little “a” trapped in a circle and then gmail.com give it a shot.
Not “gmail.com give it a shot” obviously–just “gmail.com”
Even if you may not have facebook (I hope this is still going to be visible either way), I hope this makes you smile. It’s not a very big group yet, but it’s getting there.
http://www.facebook.com/groups/138200448378/
Also, I enjoy your website, it’s great to know you’re still kicking
High-fives from Tokyo.
That’s….I’m speechless, or whatever the equivalent of that is in a combox. That’s really cool, and I’m glad you shared that. Thanks for writing, and please keep in touch!