Aubrey Haddard announces second LP & shares first single + video, "Just A Wall," out now

AUBREY HADDARD ANNOUNCES SECOND FULL-LENGTH STUDIO ALBUM, AWAKE AND TALKING OUT AUGUST 19, 2022 PRE-ORDER THE LP HERE & SHARES NEW SINGLE + VIDEO "JUST A WALL" OUT NOW VIA BEVERLY MARTEL RECORDS PREMIERED VIA THE LINE OF BEST FIT LISTEN HERE | WATCH VIDEO HERE

"Haddard's sweet vocal harmonies all evoke a new wave/pop sound that wouldn't sound out of place on an early '80s Pretenders album – perhaps if Nile Rodgers were in the producer's chair."

"Shadowy and intoxicating...brims with that intensity, centering Haddard’s striking, self-assured vocals."

"On the border between great and perfect"

Still from "Just A Wall" Official Music Video, dir. Josh Rob Thomas

Today, New York City-based indie-pop singer-songwriter, Aubrey Haddard, announces her second LP, Awake And Talking, out August 16, 2022 and available for pre-order now, via Beverly Martel Records. Along with the announcement comes the project's first single and video, "Just A Wall," where Haddard examines her own reflection and begins to find self-acceptance. The Line of Best Fit, who premiered the track, says it's "sublime, emotive and anthemic," and that "Aubrey Haddard channels Orpheus." "Just A Wall," arrives as the first single from the forthcoming LP, one that sets the tone for what's in store, and continues Haddard's trademark concoction of bold, raw emotional songwriting and mesmerizing electric guitar riffs, played by Haddard, that blur and blend lines between avant pop and indie rock. “Now that you’ve gone and shattered the glass,” she sings over a bassy pulse, before boldly asking: “Whose arms do you run to?” Inspired by Greek mythology, Haddard says of the single, "'Just A Wall' is about searching for purpose. I was finding comfort in ancient stories, and started writing from a perspective outside of my own. In this case, the Greek myth of Orpheus, and particularly the Jean Cocteau film adaptation resonated with me, and chasing my muse." After all, as Haddard suggests, a mirror is just a wall, and nothing more. Haddard continues, "Bang a fist against the mirror", this thing you've always believed in as your special calling, a reflection of you, and upon contact you find it really is just a wall, just someone searching for purpose, and you start to feel that self-acceptance that you always will be."

Watch "Just A Wall" (Official Music Video) dir. Josh Rob Thomas

The music video, directed by Josh Rob Thomas, sees Haddard at a candle-lit dinner, surrounded by several courses and glasses of wine. As the track picks up, Haddard swiftly swaps a fork for her hands, and the meal soon ends up smeared across a plexiglass wall in a moment of true catharsis. Of the video, Haddard explains, "The plexi was always the central idea of the video, creating this transparent but impenetrable division between who you are and what you could be. That division exists inside of us always and can get really tumultuous and hostile so we brought those feelings to the table, literally." The forthcoming nine track LP, Awake And Talking, puts Haddard's self-examination on full display as she navigates the nuances of love and her relationship to art, and wrestles with existential questions. While producing the album, some of the great songwriters of the late 90's and early aughts–everyone from Stereolab and Oasis, to Björk and the Cocteau Twins–were in Haddard's heavy rotation as their conceptual songwriting and harmonic approaches provided plenty of inspiration. With writing partner and multi-instrumentalist Charley Ruddell and drummer Josh Strmic, the trio came together in places of comfort like their weekly rehearsal space, Haddard's childhood home upstate, and their home studio to create this collection of songs throughout the year before tracking them over the course a week in the summer of 2021. Now with a more mature, renewed perspective, Haddard's intimate yet audacious sound is both self-assured and delicately fearless. "Awake And Talking is about seeking a sense of purpose," explains Haddard. "It challenges perception - how many ways can you look at the world before you find your place in it? It is about destiny and the journey to self-acceptance. And, like anything I create, it is about my own personal experience over the past few years. This record makes me feel powerful and confident in the face of uncertainty and it brings me a lot of joy to know that it could offer a sliver of that to anyone listening." After attending Berklee College of Music and releasing her debut album Blue Part, Haddard went on to win both Vocalist of the Year and Singer/Songwriter of the Year awards at the 2018 Boston Music Awards. In the next two years, Haddard spent time both as a headliner and as a support act, gracing stages at Firefly, Mountain Jam, Waking Windows, and a slew of other premiere festivals in 2019. She has opened for several globally recognized bands, including The Dip, Ninet Tayeb, Lawrence, Liz Cooper & The Stampede, and The National Reserve. In 2020 and 2021, Haddard released four one-off singles–"Thin Line," "Sweeter the Honey," "Portuguese Red," and "National Tragedy," leading her to today's most fully realized work yet. Haddard has already made a splash as praise has poured in from several leading tastemakers. Glide Magazine says, "between her guitar playing and vocal strength, Haddard is definitely an artist we will be catching as soon as we can," while Atwood Magazine wrote Haddard's music is "blissful and bubbly indie rock... perfect for a daytime dance party." With "Just A Wall," Aubrey Haddard aims to make peace with her reflection, pondering who she is and looks ahead to who she could be as she sets the stage to dig to the deepest depths of her artistry yet. "Just A Wall," is out everywhere now, and Haddard's second LP, Awake And Talking, arrives August 19, 2022 via Beverly Martel Records, available for pre-order now. Connect with Aubrey Haddard on Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube and stay tuned for much more from the rising musician.

Photo credit: Emmysu

Aubrey Haddard Bio In 2022, Aubrey Haddard’s vision is guided by a framework of mythology. On the New York-based singer-songwriter’s second full length release, Awake And Talking, Haddard’s concept takes shape from the album’s opening bars, the explosive, avant-pop catharsis of “Just A Wall'' sung from the longing perspective of the Greek prophet Orpheus, a legendary musician and poet. “Now that you’ve gone and shattered the glass,” she sings within a bassy pulse, before boldly asking: “Whose arms do you run to?”  It’s a statement that contains multitudes, but more singularly, one that carries the weight and struggle of disillusionment, a common tone that permeates throughout Awake And Talking. Pandemic aside, Haddard has spent the 2020’s struggling with existential burdens, deciphering her relationship to music, life and love as the world explodes around her. On her newest release, her complex relationship with her art is ever-present and on full display; the dense, electric krautrock of “Future Boxes” and the scorching, plodding rock of “Processing Power” show a more aggressive approach to songwriting; the ‘90s brit-pop rock ballad “Someone’s Daughter” and the indie pop effervescence of “Green As Ever” show a softer, more intimate process. The throughline, however, is an unmistakable reverence to melody and self-examination.  Awake And Talking is a far cry from Haddard’s soulful and knotty debut, 2018’s Blue Part. And while everything in life now feels like a far cry from 2018, Haddard’s trajectory is truly that. Since relocating from Boston to New York in 2019, six months before the world turned, everything about her approach and artistry took a left turn. She began turning to the great European songwriters of the 1990s and 2000s for inspiration, their arty conceptualism and unabashed harmonic approaches serving as both comfort and gospel. Stereolab’s Dots and Loops, Björk’s Post, Oasis’s Definitely Maybe, and Cocteau Twins’ Heaven or Las Vegas were on constant rotation during the writing and production of Awake And Talking. “Bittersweet Symphony” was an unironic anthem through it all.  Haddard and her trio—made up of writing partner and multi-instrumentalist Charley Ruddell and drummer Josh Strmic—methodically and meticulously fleshed this group of songs for over a year before tracking them over a week span in the Summer of 2021. The intent was perfection: To truly capture a sound that was created in the likeness of their heroes; to make every choice feel like it was consequential; to regain control in a chasm. What resulted was an album that constantly smacks and pulses, each song standing alone as its own body of work, the collection as sturdy as a greek pillar.  Awake And Talking arrives August 2022 via Beverly Martel Records.

Tracklisting: Awake And Talking (LP) 01. Just A Wall 02. Green As Ever 03. Somewhere 04. Harbor 05. Future Boxes 06. Processing Power 07. Doors 08. Forever Is 09. Someone's Daughter

Still from "Just A Wall" Official Music Video, dir. Josh Rob Thomas

For more information on Aubrey Haddard, please visit: Website | Instagram | Facebook | Twitter | Soundcloud | Bandcamp | YouTube