Treetop Flyers - Sweet Greens & Blues.
Background - "Sweet Greens and Blues" is the new single by Treetop Flyers, which is taken from their forthcoming eponymous third album, due out on 24 August via Loose. The video, directed by long-time collaborator Sam Ford, was shared by Folk Radio, who said;“The video has that vintage look and feel and it perfectly encapsulates that glorious 60s tinged West Coast Americana with a British twist. With warm, rich harmonies, and a summery groove, the song oozes soulfulness."
Originally formed by Reid Morrison, Laurie Sherman and Sam Beer, in recent years Treetop Flyers have settled in to a refreshed band line-up. “Sweet Greens & Blues” was initially recorded for their previous album Palamino, but it never really quite came together until new drummer Rupert Shreeve came on board and they were able to capture the feel of the song that they had been searching for. On the new record they are also joined by saxophonist Geoff Thomas Widdowson from Loose label mates Danny and The Champions Of The World.
Treetop Flyers follows the band’s two previous critically acclaimed albums, their debut The Mountain Moves from 2013, which was praised by The Guardian who wrote that it; “effortlessly captures the spirit of late-1960s west coast pop-rock: the Byrds and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young,” as well as Q, who wrote that they; “share with Midlake custody of a brood of Buckingham/Nicks-era Fleetwood Mac licks, likewise the Mac’s mood of unrequited yearning.” Their second album Palomino, from 2016 was praised by Uncut, who called it; “a fittingly great-sounding record, with the band magically tight and melodically assured as they play songs bathed in an evocative ’70s West Coast glow, while drawing on influences including outlaw country, soul and Nigerian psych.”
Whereas previous albums had been recorded either at their own Soup studios in London (where Sam works) or further afield in studios in Malibu and New York, this time round they headed to The Cube in Stoke Newington. A DIY studio and rehearsal space, it backs on to the sanding workshop of the London picture framers and fellow musicians Brider & Bull (The Wave Pictures, Surfing Magazines). They found that every time they set up for a recording session they would have to swab down the tape machine and sections of their equipment with contact cleaner to get rid of the sawdust. Thankfully, nothing exploded or caught fire and they eventually came out with something honest and fun. As Reid explains; “Stripping back the recording process and working within the limitations of our equipment and recording knowledge has created what we believe to be our most true to form record and has breathed new life into our music, which is one of the main reasons we have decide to simply call the album Treetop Flyers as we believe it represents a fresh start for the band.” WEBSITE.
Just over a month ago we shared 'Needle' from the band and the follow up song 'Sweet Greens & Blues' is another soulful gem. Mixing Americana with a touch of psych and drizzled with melodic hooks and warm vibes, this is a fabulous and beautiful piece as Treetop Flyers continue to impress in a big way!
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Super Paradise - Sweat.
Background - Super Paradise’s new high-octane single ‘Sweat’ takes a more frenetic direction then their debut album. Its constantly shifting dynamics drop between almost silent verses with short blasts of energy to wall-of-sound crashing choruses.
The velocity of the tempo and the ferocity of the music makes ‘Sweat’ a fitting name for this volatile tune. The single launch party will be on the 24th July at The Waiting Room, London.
Born in Milan, now based in London, Super Paradise released their debut album Quencebo in 2016.
They have since been gigging constantly, played headline shows around London, toured festivals of Italy, supported Warbly Jets and Black Honey, recorded a new single in the Italian mountains and their music has been featured on the latest Ray Ban advert. Their self-defined genre of 'dream garage' builds on the edgy energy of the San Francisco psych scene and the soundscapes of New Order. BANDCAMP.
We have featured Super Paradise just once before back in late 2016, and they return with both power and pace as 'Sweat' demonstrates. Pausing for breath with the tiniest of refrains the song hurtles along with some fiery rock intensity, allowing the vocals to add just a little more smoothness to what is a raucous affair.
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Andy Pratt - Further Disruption (E.P).
Background - This is what was scribbled with a sharpie pen onto a CD of mixes handed to Andy on July 16th, 2016. After receiving an email from Pratt in January of the same year, legendary recording engineer Steve Albini quickly realized that he was not dealing with the Boston rock icon of the ‘70s, but a new & different Andy Pratt.
As a vocalist, guitarist, songwriter & photographer, Pratt loves the fuzz, blur, grain, & beautiful imperfections of live music and art. With an affinity for analog recording, vintage instruments, film cameras, string quartets, & brooding melodies, his music lives within a modern impressionist world of his own creation. Pratt is a storyteller who sings to clearly evoke a mood, space or time. With a dry vocal and reverberating guitar, he brings his listeners into the world he’s created.
The summer of 2018 finds Pratt on tour in support of his sophomore EP, “Further Disruption.” After handing his band members a few solo demos that he recorded on a 4-track Tascam cassette recorder, he knew that he’d want the same tape/analog sound on the final product. Pratt naturally sought out Steve Albini at Electrical Audio Studios in Chicago and asked him to track and mix the album. “Further Disruption” is a five song EP that is the follow-up to Pratt’s 2017 debut “Horizon Disrupted.” Recorded during the same session as Horizon and initially planned to be on the debut album, Pratt explains “I felt these songs deserved a separate documentation. They’re a little more gritty, rockin’ and down to earth than Horizon’s dreamy/ethereal feel.” With topics ranging from adultery, to alcoholism, to a girl obsessed with thrift shopping, the listener might wonder if this is the same Andy Pratt. The album features a classic vocals/guitar, bass, & drums trio. With the music, lyrics, arrangements & artwork for both albums all created by Pratt, there is a cohesive thread that ties these elements together, proving they are one & the same.
Andy Pratt is a Chicago-based singer-songwriter & jazz artist. He has toured across the country as both a leader and sideman. In 2017, Pratt toured the U.S. and Canada in support of his debut “Horizon Disrupted.” He can be found playing guitar & singing most nights throughout the city & Midwest region. Pratt is often a featured guest with the Joe Policastro Trio & appears on the group’s 2016 sophomore release, “Pops.” He has also recorded with singer-songwriter Adam James Sorensen & appears on his debut “Midwest” album, WEBSITE.
The 'Further Disruption' E.P provides a variety of musical styles that are centred around some moody, earnest and quite potent vocals. Musically this is a delight, as old school rock and roll vies with primitive beats and some darker, stripped back pieces. It all connects together well, and is encouragingly different, in a fine sort of way.
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Delta Will - Nothing Is Enough.
Background from Delta Will - The first single Nothing Is Enough, taken from the new Multitudes I EP, which we see as a continuation of our psych-pop, folk & soul influences.
We wrote “Nothing Is Enough” as a retro guitar-pop affair with big vocal harmonies and bouncy bass lines. Lyrically, it’s a more sombre affair that gives glimpses into our modern obsession with staring at screens.
The song grapples with our desire for perpetual happiness, and our tendency to hide our true feelings. We paired up with animator Mike Pereira to make a video that illustrates these themes in a playful satirical manner, definitely somewhat inspired by Terry Gilliam’s fantastical Monty Python animations.
Multitudes I is the first in a series of three EP’s we’ll be releasing over the next year. Delta Will has always had a somewhat eclectic sound, inspired by a wide range of music and this project was the perfect excuse to write songs that drill a little deeper into some genres we’ve always flirted with. Delta Will’s ‘Multitudes I’ EP is out July 27th. FACEBOOK.
'Nothing Is Enough' might have been intended to be something of a retro pop song, however it has plenty of fresh and appealing vibes and is beautifully constructed. Catchy and accompanied by an imaginative video, those forthcoming E.P's sound rather promising.
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Showing posts with label Treetop Flyers. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Treetop Flyers. Show all posts
Telete - Sons of Bill - Treetop Flyers
Telete - Like Honey.
Background - Following shows with Julia Jacklin, Rainbow Chan, Totally Mild, Hatchie and high praise for their deeply affecting sound, akin to "being mown down in a field of violets", Perth chamber/dream pop duo Telete (Teh-leh-tee) announce the wide release of 'Spectator', their surprise debut EP on Friday 22 June. Their new single 'Like Honey', delivering "what it says on the tin" (Nat Tencic, triple j) is out now.
Drawing inspiration from acts such as Broadcast, Julia Holter and Beach House, Perth’s Telete (Mai Barnes & Hayley Ayres) weave strings, synth lines and canned percussion together to build warm-hued compositions that simmer underneath intimate vocals.
Telete's "dramatic and delicate" heartrending version of a lullaby (Declan Byrne), 'Like Honey' has already oozed its way onto playlists for triple j Home and Hosed, triple j Unearthed, Triple R's Out On The Patio, RTRFM's Out To Lunch and more. Plush with thick synths and strings, the track swirls brightly in waltz time around a comforting, centrifugal sadness.
"I wrote [Like Honey] after an awful breakup last year, and I remember bawling my eyes out as I scribbled down the words. But every time I sang them, they hurt less. There’s a strange comfort in saying an uncomfortable truth out loud: you take something you’ve internalised, a feeling that you carry in your stomach and chest and heart, and you push it all the way back out." - Mai Barnes. BANDCAMP.
'Like Honey' is a gorgeous mixture of chamber and dream pop that is sensitive and engaging, allowing beautiful atmospheric soundscapes to emerge. It's one of eight tracks on the new EP, and I have to say, there is not one track that fails to charm and dig some deep musical hooks in. Telete have something very special going on here, one that is well worth checking out.
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Sons of Bill - Firebird '85.
Background - Central Virginia’s band of brothers, Sons of Bill, have announced the release of their new album 'Oh God Ma'am' on 29 June on Loose.
Following the release of singles 'Believer/Pretender' and 'Easier', they have now unveiled new track 'Firebird '85'. "I guess the song is technically “about” a construction worker having a strange redemptive daydream about getting off work. Or maybe he's dead? Still not sure", James tells Uncut Magazine, "I just like the idea of ordinary people, living out their ordinary lives, lost in some grand, cosmic drama inside their own head. It’s how all of our lives are. Just another feel-good song about the inner void."
'Oh God Ma’am', Sons of Bill's latest LP is the band’s most coherent artistic statement to date-- subtle, risky, and sonically ambitious. Recorded both in Seattle with west coast indie legend Phil Ek (Shins, Fleet Foxes) and in Nashville with Sean Sullivan (Sturgill Simpson) and mixed by Peter Katis (The National, Interpol) the album shows the Wilson brothers moving beyond the galvanic Americana-rock comfort zone of previous efforts, for a more elegant and restrained sound-- a darker, and more complexly layered rock record that manages to be the band’s most emotionally intimate and sonically expansive. Insistent, dancey rhythms and dreamy, hook-filled, pyrotechnics abound, creating a deceptively anthemic mood around songs that are in and of themselves intensely introverted.
'Oh God Ma’am' is a coming-of-age record for an over-stimulated age-- equal parts post-adolescent anxiety and old-soul humility-- literate, gorgeous, and darkly contemplative. WEBSITE.
Sons of Bill will tour the UK and Europe in August:
Mon 13th - The Hope, Brighton (UK)
Tues 14th - Omeara, London (UK)
Weds 15th - Tunnels, Bristol (UK)
Thurs 16th - Brudenell, Leeds (UK)
Fri 17th - Broadcast, Glasgow (UK)
Sat 18th - Soup Kitchen, Manchester (UK)
Sun 19th - Rescue Rooms, Nottingham (UK)
Tues 21 Aug - Blue Shell, Cologne (DE)
Weds 22 Aug - Milia Club, Munich (DE)
Thurs 23 Aug - Musik & Frieden, Berlin (DE)
Fri 24 Aug - Stage Club, Hamburg (DE)
Sat 25 Aug - Once In a Blue Moon Festival, Amsterdam (NL).
Less than a month since Sons Of Bill first graced our pages we now have the follow up track 'Firebird '85'. The Americana qualities are again notable, albeit this time the band take a more country rock direction, doing so with refinement and plenty of heart.
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Treetop Flyers - Needle.
Background - London soulful country rock outfit Treetop Flyers return with their eponymous third album, due out on 24 August via Loose. Weaving blissful 60s tinged West Coast Americana with a British rock’n’roll swagger, the album oozes with soulfulness, thanks to singer Reid Morrison’s rich, warm vocals, stunning close harmonies and the atmospheric warble of a Mellotron.
The band shared video for the taster track "Needle" (directed by long-time band collaborator Sam Ford) via Clash, who called it; "a bold, vivid return, one that finds Treetop Flyers pushing themselves further and further". The song is based round a looped section at the end of a record about not wanting a moment to end. As Reid explains; “I had just got out the shower and I was listening to an old Ted Hawkins record. I lost track of what I was doing and heard this noise, I couldn't work out what it was but it sounded like the best drum sound I'd ever heard… with the old school hiss and everything. I thought my flatmates were playing a tune or something. I then remembered I had put the record on and the record had reached the end but had this perfect loop.”
The band was originally formed by Reid Morrison, Laurie Sherman and Sam Beer, who met whilst playing in other projects as part of the West London folk scene. Although their name, Treetop Flyers, will always be linked to the Stephen Stills song, they settled on it as they all felt like outsiders but have stuck together ever since through line-up and life changes. They have most recently been joined by Rupert Shreeve on drums, who has added another dimension to their style and took the songs in uncharted directions that were previously out of reach. On the new record they are also joined by saxophonist Geoff Thomas Widdowson from Loose label mates Danny and The Champions Of The World.
Treetop Flyers follows the band’s two previous critically acclaimed albums, their debut The Mountain Moves from 2013, which was praised by The Guardian who wrote that it; “effortlessly captures the spirit of late-1960s west coast pop-rock: the Byrds and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young,” as well as Q, who wrote that they; “share with Midlake custody of a brood of Buckingham/Nicks-era Fleetwood Mac licks, likewise the Mac’s mood of unrequited yearning.” Their second album Palomino, from 2016 was praised by Uncut, who called it; “a fittingly great-sounding record, with the band magically tight and melodically assured as they play songs bathed in an evocative ’70s West Coast glow, while drawing on influences including outlaw country, soul and Nigerian psych.” WEBSITE.
It's always pleasing to see country rock music spread it's wings beyond North America, and with 'Needle' the Treetop Flyers not only do that, they do so with grace, style and plenty of natural feeling. This is one very special song, the soulful vibes are everywhere, I am mightily impressed!
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Background - Following shows with Julia Jacklin, Rainbow Chan, Totally Mild, Hatchie and high praise for their deeply affecting sound, akin to "being mown down in a field of violets", Perth chamber/dream pop duo Telete (Teh-leh-tee) announce the wide release of 'Spectator', their surprise debut EP on Friday 22 June. Their new single 'Like Honey', delivering "what it says on the tin" (Nat Tencic, triple j) is out now.
Drawing inspiration from acts such as Broadcast, Julia Holter and Beach House, Perth’s Telete (Mai Barnes & Hayley Ayres) weave strings, synth lines and canned percussion together to build warm-hued compositions that simmer underneath intimate vocals.
Telete's "dramatic and delicate" heartrending version of a lullaby (Declan Byrne), 'Like Honey' has already oozed its way onto playlists for triple j Home and Hosed, triple j Unearthed, Triple R's Out On The Patio, RTRFM's Out To Lunch and more. Plush with thick synths and strings, the track swirls brightly in waltz time around a comforting, centrifugal sadness.
"I wrote [Like Honey] after an awful breakup last year, and I remember bawling my eyes out as I scribbled down the words. But every time I sang them, they hurt less. There’s a strange comfort in saying an uncomfortable truth out loud: you take something you’ve internalised, a feeling that you carry in your stomach and chest and heart, and you push it all the way back out." - Mai Barnes. BANDCAMP.
'Like Honey' is a gorgeous mixture of chamber and dream pop that is sensitive and engaging, allowing beautiful atmospheric soundscapes to emerge. It's one of eight tracks on the new EP, and I have to say, there is not one track that fails to charm and dig some deep musical hooks in. Telete have something very special going on here, one that is well worth checking out.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sons of Bill - Firebird '85.
Background - Central Virginia’s band of brothers, Sons of Bill, have announced the release of their new album 'Oh God Ma'am' on 29 June on Loose.
Following the release of singles 'Believer/Pretender' and 'Easier', they have now unveiled new track 'Firebird '85'. "I guess the song is technically “about” a construction worker having a strange redemptive daydream about getting off work. Or maybe he's dead? Still not sure", James tells Uncut Magazine, "I just like the idea of ordinary people, living out their ordinary lives, lost in some grand, cosmic drama inside their own head. It’s how all of our lives are. Just another feel-good song about the inner void."
'Oh God Ma’am', Sons of Bill's latest LP is the band’s most coherent artistic statement to date-- subtle, risky, and sonically ambitious. Recorded both in Seattle with west coast indie legend Phil Ek (Shins, Fleet Foxes) and in Nashville with Sean Sullivan (Sturgill Simpson) and mixed by Peter Katis (The National, Interpol) the album shows the Wilson brothers moving beyond the galvanic Americana-rock comfort zone of previous efforts, for a more elegant and restrained sound-- a darker, and more complexly layered rock record that manages to be the band’s most emotionally intimate and sonically expansive. Insistent, dancey rhythms and dreamy, hook-filled, pyrotechnics abound, creating a deceptively anthemic mood around songs that are in and of themselves intensely introverted.
'Oh God Ma’am' is a coming-of-age record for an over-stimulated age-- equal parts post-adolescent anxiety and old-soul humility-- literate, gorgeous, and darkly contemplative. WEBSITE.
Sons of Bill will tour the UK and Europe in August:
Mon 13th - The Hope, Brighton (UK)
Tues 14th - Omeara, London (UK)
Weds 15th - Tunnels, Bristol (UK)
Thurs 16th - Brudenell, Leeds (UK)
Fri 17th - Broadcast, Glasgow (UK)
Sat 18th - Soup Kitchen, Manchester (UK)
Sun 19th - Rescue Rooms, Nottingham (UK)
Tues 21 Aug - Blue Shell, Cologne (DE)
Weds 22 Aug - Milia Club, Munich (DE)
Thurs 23 Aug - Musik & Frieden, Berlin (DE)
Fri 24 Aug - Stage Club, Hamburg (DE)
Sat 25 Aug - Once In a Blue Moon Festival, Amsterdam (NL).
Less than a month since Sons Of Bill first graced our pages we now have the follow up track 'Firebird '85'. The Americana qualities are again notable, albeit this time the band take a more country rock direction, doing so with refinement and plenty of heart.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Treetop Flyers - Needle.
Background - London soulful country rock outfit Treetop Flyers return with their eponymous third album, due out on 24 August via Loose. Weaving blissful 60s tinged West Coast Americana with a British rock’n’roll swagger, the album oozes with soulfulness, thanks to singer Reid Morrison’s rich, warm vocals, stunning close harmonies and the atmospheric warble of a Mellotron.
The band shared video for the taster track "Needle" (directed by long-time band collaborator Sam Ford) via Clash, who called it; "a bold, vivid return, one that finds Treetop Flyers pushing themselves further and further". The song is based round a looped section at the end of a record about not wanting a moment to end. As Reid explains; “I had just got out the shower and I was listening to an old Ted Hawkins record. I lost track of what I was doing and heard this noise, I couldn't work out what it was but it sounded like the best drum sound I'd ever heard… with the old school hiss and everything. I thought my flatmates were playing a tune or something. I then remembered I had put the record on and the record had reached the end but had this perfect loop.”
The band was originally formed by Reid Morrison, Laurie Sherman and Sam Beer, who met whilst playing in other projects as part of the West London folk scene. Although their name, Treetop Flyers, will always be linked to the Stephen Stills song, they settled on it as they all felt like outsiders but have stuck together ever since through line-up and life changes. They have most recently been joined by Rupert Shreeve on drums, who has added another dimension to their style and took the songs in uncharted directions that were previously out of reach. On the new record they are also joined by saxophonist Geoff Thomas Widdowson from Loose label mates Danny and The Champions Of The World.
Treetop Flyers follows the band’s two previous critically acclaimed albums, their debut The Mountain Moves from 2013, which was praised by The Guardian who wrote that it; “effortlessly captures the spirit of late-1960s west coast pop-rock: the Byrds and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young,” as well as Q, who wrote that they; “share with Midlake custody of a brood of Buckingham/Nicks-era Fleetwood Mac licks, likewise the Mac’s mood of unrequited yearning.” Their second album Palomino, from 2016 was praised by Uncut, who called it; “a fittingly great-sounding record, with the band magically tight and melodically assured as they play songs bathed in an evocative ’70s West Coast glow, while drawing on influences including outlaw country, soul and Nigerian psych.” WEBSITE.
It's always pleasing to see country rock music spread it's wings beyond North America, and with 'Needle' the Treetop Flyers not only do that, they do so with grace, style and plenty of natural feeling. This is one very special song, the soulful vibes are everywhere, I am mightily impressed!
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Bumper Catch Up featuring: Rubblebucket - Mollie Elizabeth - Lilly Hiatt - The Kearns Family - WILDES and St Francis Hotel - Lucette - Caroline Strickland - Mon Rayon - Lala Salama
Keeping the comments a little shorter so we can cram a few more songs in than usual, this is our first bumper catch up of some really fine r...