"celestial folk delivered with sincerity...wrapped around the infectious soundscapes"
Clash Magazine
“beautiful, understated and special”
Huw Stephens, BBC 6 Music
“instantly it connects itself to every crevice of your soul”
So Young Magazine
"beautiful, ethereal"
EARMILK
“so beautiful, ethereal, wonderfully wistful”
Chris Hawkins, BBC 6 Music
“Pet Deaths’ natural evolution is one worth studying”
DIY Magazine
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(7th April) –– London based duo Pet Deaths today announce their second album unhappy ending - out 27th May via Silver Mind Records and release new single "swingtime" alongside a stark, surrealist black and white short film. The announcement follows the band's widely acclaimed debut album To the Top of the Hill and Roll... - released in 2019, described by Huw Stephens as “beautiful, understated and special” - noting it as one of his favourite albums of the year.
Inspired, musically, by the spiritual moments of Alice Coltrane, the freeness of Miles Davis' Bitches Brew with a sprinkling of Talk Talk’s Spirit Of Eden in its colourful unravelling, unhappy ending is an enveloping experience, touching upon universal themes but all shone through the lens of lyricist and vocalist Liam Karima’s signature perspective.
Swirling new single "swingtime" showcases the Pet Deaths' ability to juxtapose this deep dive of discovery with the brightness of the music. A beautiful five minutes, the song feels like a daydream, a memory you can’t quite get a hold of - “Hindsight is true fuckery, it’s our last waltz, and curtains for you and me baby,” Liam sings – while the music paints an almost psychedelic journey, the layering of the instrumentation indicative of the band’s desire to push these songs to their most colourful form.
Speaking on the release of "swingtime", vocalist Liam Karima said: "It’s a bite in the cheek song about irony at its bitter finest, protecting that loved one from the rogues and strapping in for the bumpy ride. When we suddenly see the sun through the clouds and it gets snatched away by a rain cloud; when we buy the milk and it’s sour; just when you think things are about to get better, D:REAM write a song about it - we go back to swingtimes."
The release of "swingtime" today coincides with a new visual accompaniment directed by the band's own Liam Karima, and photographer Kulbir Thandi. Commenting on the video, Liam said: "The idea was to make a surrealist short with nods to Bergman, Lynch and Buñuel. Actress Aurore Pandenou really took to the role of ones imagination in the hole underground. Shot in 11 hours and edited by Robin Philpot. I think we managed to capture a strange time in swingtime. 6ft under."
Graeme Martin and Liam Karima (who make up Pet Deaths) made new album unhappy ending to be both explored and sat with. In age of dull disconnection and constant refreshing, the album was deliberately and acutely considered to be a journey of its own; nine new songs but one whole immersive piece for the listener to climb inside, in the quiet of reflection, in the sobering commute to and from.
Recorded at a residential studio in Abingdon, Oxfordshire which they used as a retreat from the business of London – fleshed-out and toyed with over time with their acclaimed producer Ian Davenport (Slowdive, Gaz Coombes, Radiohead's Philip Selway) who encouraged the duo to lean into the wilder parts of their creativity.
Having both moved to London in 2017, Pet Deaths formed following a chance encounter in Ladbroke Grove. Feeling equally cellophane new in the capital's concrete fast lane, they agreed to meet regularly. Their subsequent writing and drinking sessions became a Zen-like philosophy by which to navigate their new homes, spending gloomy November evenings on their rain-soaked Ballardian balcony, experimenting with loops, drones and poetry.
Previously supporting the likes of Elbow and Arab Strap, Pet Deaths are no stranger to the live stage - with more shows planned for 2022. The band's unique brand of melancholia has seen high praise from publications including DIY Magazine, So Young Magazine, Clash Magazine and Drowned In Sound - as well as feverish radio support from BBC 6 Music and Radio 1 – as well as Radio X and NTS.
A band who revel in the notion of 'the album' - "swingtime" and previous taster "all the things you said you were" are merely snapshots into a wider concept. "When writing the new music, I was at this stage in my life where I was finding new love, new beginnings but also losing things in the fire," singer Liam Karima said. "The main focus was the question - 'is life an unhappy ending?' Or do we become part of a bigger movement to more positive things?"
Pet Deaths' new single "swingtime" is released today, 7th April. The band's second album 'unhappy ending' is out 27th May via Silver Mind Records. |
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unhappy ending - track list (out 27th May)
1. all the things you said you were (i don’t believe in ghosts)
2. swingtime
3. pretty mistake (in the cul-de-sac)
4. praise cilla black
5. don’t die on me now (loser)
6. now that’s what I call cheap talk!
7. not everyone cares (if you die)
8. happy ending
9. sleep tight tonight
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LIVE DATES
28 May, Newcastle - Cobalt Studios
31 May, London - Moth Club
9 April, Falmouth - Wanderfal Festival
14 May, Leeds - IN COLOUR, Brudenell Social Club
9 June, Bristol - The Crofters Rights
10 June, Manchester - Gullivers
11 June, Sheffield - Yellow Arch
12 August, Saffron Walden, Audley End (supporting Elbow) |
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