El Ten Eleven Announce New Album "New Year's Eve"; Watch "Meta Metta" Video Now

	EL TEN ELEVEN RELEASE NEW YEAR’S EVE ON MARCH 4 VIA JOYFUL NOISE RECORDINGS PRE-ORDER HERE: http://joyfulnoi.se/ETE-NYE WATCH “META METTA” VIDEO https://youtu.be/GpqP72YYfJc

El Ten Eleven (photo credit: Mark Owens)

	Jan. 5. 2022, Southern California – El Ten Eleven, the SoCal duo whose 2020 triple-LP Tautology series presciently and ambitiously put the arc of human life to music, return with a joyously unrestrained six-song album, New Year’s Eve (March 4, Joyful Noise Recordings). “New Year’s Eve is a reference to guarded optimism about what is to come. At the time, it seemed like our national divisiveness might be waning and the end of the pandemic was near. But of course that’s not how it turned out,” bassist Kristian Dunn said of the album’s inspiration. “That’s what New Year’s Eves are. You think it’s gonna be a fun night, but usually it’s disappointing at the end.” The outfit preview New Year’s Eve with the release of a new song and accompanying video for “Meta Metta” (https://youtu.be/GpqP72YYfJc). The performance clip was filmed at The Cube in Los Angeles. Over the course of 20 years and 11 albums, El Ten Eleven has continued to redefine the potential of bass guitar and drums. With an arsenal of pedals, labyrinthine arrangements, and a deft use of looping, Kristian Dunn (bass) and Tim Fogarty (drums) create two-man symphonies. With New Year’s Eve, the duo melds electrifying disco grooves with their tried-and-true experimental rock atmospherics. Throughout its six tracks, New Year’s Eve romps through infectious grooves, Rototom blasts, electrifying breakdowns, and meditative reprieves. Along with the pedal-fueled trickery and musical prowess fans have come to expect from El Ten Eleven, New Year’s Eve channels Dunn’s lifelong love of disco. Channeling memories of a childhood spent spinning Niles Rogers and Chic while his peers blared heavy metal, Dunn imbued his own emotions onto the delightful excess of disco. “I’m a huge fan of disco music, and I mean that completely sincerely,” Dunn says of the Sonny DiPerri (DIIV, Portugal The Man) produced album. “I’m a bass player, so the bass is often the driving lead instrument of disco music, so that appealed to me--that’s just in my blood. This love was always in me, and it was time for it to come out. The album is kinda funky and kinda dancy, but with my sad boy Kristian Dunn crap on top.” The band closed out 2021 with a debut of the album’s title track and an ongoing U.S. tour, which resumes this Friday in Los Angeles. The full list of dates, which sees the pair on the road for the first three months of the New Year, are below. Supporting artists include Sego, Mylets, Cedric Noel, and A Beacon School.

New Year’s Eve album cover

New Year’s Eve track list: New Year’s Eve Meta Metta The Time Knife Isn’t Everything Enough Sixteen Circles A Reflection Of A Reflection El Ten Eleven Tour Dates: Jan 7: Los Angeles, CA The Roxy* Jan 8: San Francisco, CA The Independent* Jan 13: San Diego, CA Casbah* Jan 14: Phoenix, AZ Crescent Ballroom* Jan 15: Tucson, AZ 191 Toole* Jan 16: El Paso, TX Lowbrow Palace* Jan 20: Dallas, TX Club Dada& Jan 21: Austin, TX The Far Out Lounge& Jan 22: Houston, TX White Oak& Jan 23: New Orleans, LA Gasa Gasa& Jan 26: Nashville, TN Exit / In* Jan 27: Carrboro, NC Cat’s Cradle* Jan 28: Asheville, NC The Grey Eagle* Jan 29: Atlanta, GA Terminal West* Feb 1: Kansas City, MO Record Bar* Feb 3: Colorado Springs, CO Black Sheep* Feb 5: Durango, CO Animas* Feb 6: Denver, CO Bluebird* Apr 6: Omaha, NE Slowdown^ Apr 7: St. Paul, MN Turf Club^ Apr 8: Chicago, IL Chop Shop^ Apr 9: Grand Rapids, MI Pyramid Scheme^ Apr 10: Indianapolis, IN HiFi^ Apr 13: Cleveland, OH Beachland Ballroom^ Apr 14: Pittsburgh, PA Thunderbird^ Apr 15: Washington, DC Union Stage^ Apr 16: Philadelphia, PA Milkboy^ Apr 20: Rochester, NY Bugjar^ Apr 21: Rochester, NY Bugjar^ Apr 22: Boston, MA Paradise^+ Apr 23: Brooklyn, NY Brooklyn Made^+ * Sego supports & Mylets supports ^ Cedric Noel supports + A Beacon School supports European tour dates: May 12: Glasgow, UK @ Broadcast May 13: Leeds, UK @ Boom May 14-15: London, UK @ Portals Festival May 15: Bristol, UK @ The Crofters Right May 17: Paris, FR @ Supersonic May 18: Den Bosch, NL @ Willem Twee Poppodium May 19-20: Copenhagen, DK @ A Colossal Weekend May 22: Berlin, DE @ Prachtwerk May 23: Hamburg, DE @ Indra May 24: Cologne, DE @ Helios37 May 27: Metz, FR @ Young Team Festival Dunn (bass/guitar) and Fogarty (drums) have flourished outside the accepted norms of rock orthodoxy, releasing eight full-length albums, four EPs and performing over 750 live shows. Utilizing inventive arrangements and a masterful use of looping, El Ten Eleven have been noted for their ability to create a sound much bigger than their individual parts. SF Weekly said of the pair’s live performance: “watching El Ten Eleven play is something like watching two superheroes do their thing.” Consequence of Sound called their music “euphoric,” KEXP described their output as “transcendent” and Under The Radar declared the pair’s unique style a “buoyant brand of post-rock.” # # # Elteneleven.com Facebook.com/elteneleven Twitter.com/elteneleven Instagram.com/elteneleven YouTube.com/elteneleven

THE SMILE THOM YORKE, JONNY GREENWOOD & TOM SKINNER DEBUT SINGLE

THE SMILE

THOM YORKE, JONNY GREENWOOD & TOM SKINNER
 
DEBUT SINGLE YOU WILL NEVER WORK IN TELEVISION AGAIN OUT NOW
 
THREE INTIMATE PERFORMANCES TO BE LIVESTREAMED FROM LONDON JANUARY 29 & 30

[credit Alex Lake]

The Smile, the new group comprising Radiohead’s Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood and Sons Of Kemet’s Tom Skinner, have today revealed their debut single ‘You Will Never Work In Television Again’. 

The track, which is available now accompanied by a lyric video (dir. Duncan Loudon) was first heard in the band’s secret show as part of last year’s Glastonbury event Live At Worthy Farm. It is the first official release from The Smile, produced by Nigel Godrich. 

The Smile will play three consecutive live shows within a twenty-four hour period at Magazine London on the 29 and 30 January. Performing to a seated audience in the round, the three shows will also be broadcast in real time via livestream. 

The performances bring together a live show, a livestream and a cinematic film, captured by award-winning director, Paul Dugdale (The Rolling Stones, Adele, Paul McCartney) and produced by Driift. 

For those not attending in person, anyone can join the show via livestream from anywhere in the world, at the hour most suited to them.

The show times are as follows: 

BROADCAST #1: London – 8pm Sat. / New York – 3pm Sat. / Los Angeles – 12pm Sat. / Sydney – 7am Sun. / Tokyo – 5am Sun.

BROADCAST #2: London – 1am Sun. / New York – 8pm Sat. / Los Angeles – 5pm Sat. / Sydney – 12pm Sun. / Tokyo – 10am Sun.

BROADCAST #3: London – 11am Sun. / New York – 6am Sun. / Los Angeles – 3am Sun. / Sydney – 10pm Sun. / Tokyo – 8pm Sun.

All three Broadcasts will also be available to ticketholders as unlimited on-demand replays for 48 hours from 2pm GMT Sunday 30 January.

Sign up for pre-sale tickets by joining the mailing list at: www.thesmiletheband.com 

Physical and livestream tickets are available on general sale from 7th January at 9am GMT via Driift – details below.

Ticket links:  
Physical 
Livestream

For more information, please visit:

Instagram 
Twitter
Facebook
https://thesmiletheband.com 

About Driift: 

Driift is an award-winning producer and promoter of innovative, high quality livestream events for the world’s greatest artists and performers including Laura Marling, Nick Cave, Kylie Minogue, The War On Drugs and Dita Von Teese. Working with globally-renowned directors, Driift has collaborated extensively with a wide range of artist teams and partners including CAA, BMG, WMG, UMG, Glastonbury Festival, DREAMSTAGE, DICE, Universe/Ticketmaster and Pulse Films. 

Headquartered in the UK and with offices in North America and Australia, Driift has sold more than 600,000 tickets to audiences in more than 190 countries.  

www.driift.live

Yola gives powerhouse disco performance on The Tonight Show and goes deep with CBS Mornings

YOLA GIVES POWERHOUSE DISCO-INFUSED PERFORMANCE OF NEW SINGLE “DANCING AWAY IN TEARS” ON THE TONIGHT SHOW WITH JIMMY FALLON IN SUPPORT OF HER GRAMMY-NOMINATED ALBUM STAND FOR MYSELF WATCH HERE YOLA ALSO SPOKE TO ANTHONY MASON FOR CBS MORNINGS FOR AN IN-DEPTH PERSONAL PROFILE WHICH AIRED THIS MORNING WATCH HERE Anthony Mason and Yola  STAND FOR MYSELF IS OUT NOW, VIA EASY EYE SOUND https://click.ees.link/standformyself

“A tour de force of showmanship.”   “The best soul record of the last 20 years.”   “Laid-back slice of elegant, '60s-styled soul” “‘Album made on her own terms.”

January 5, 2022 - Last night, rising superstar Yola gave a sultry, powerhouse performance of her disco-infused break-up single “Dancing Away In Tears” on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, making this the television debut of the new single from her GRAMMY nominated album Stand For Myself. The Black British singer-songwriter is currently nominated for Best Americana Album for Stand For Myself and Best American Roots Song for “Diamond Studded Shoes,” making her a six-time GRAMMY nominee.   Following the Tonight Show performance, this morning, an in-depth profile piece with Anthony Mason aired on CBS Mornings, charting Yola’s upbringing, music influences, career and life in Nashville, and coming into her own. Yola and Mason chatted at local East Nashville bar Attaboy, where she gave a stunning solo acoustic performance of her song “Barely Alive.” They also walked through the National Museum of African American Music, where they spoke about Yola’s influences such as Aretha Franklin and Mavis Staples.    Yola’s GRAMMY-nominated sophomore album Stand For Myself, released via Easy Eye Sound on July 30, 2021, reflects on Yola’s belief in the possibility of paradigm shift beyond the mental programming that creates tokenism and bigotry, which have deeply impacted her personal life and professional career. It has also been hailed as a singular sonic shift, by publications including Billboard who included “Diamond Studded Shoes” in the best songs of 2021 so far. Rolling Stone Magazine described it as “an album that reflects her musical journey, with songs that nod to various styles of R&B and dance music.” Slate praised her new music as “absolutely remarkable” and Entertainment Weekly claimed “her vocals recall the poise and grandeur of music's greatest vintage pop singers, from Dusty Springfield to Shirley Bassey.”   Produced by Dan Auerbach, the album traces a musical thread to Yola’s most eclectic musical inspirations. From the seminal albums Yola discovered via her mother’s 70s record collection, to her love of eclectic British radio, which featured a fluid mix of rock, 90s neo soul, R&B and britpop—all which soundtracked her childhood and teenage years in Bristol, England.   Some songs began in the twilight hours of Yola’s pandemic isolation, reflecting on her personal and our collective moments of longing and awakening. Other songs germinated years ago and were inspired by personal moments, including “Break The Bough,” which Yola started to write following her mother’s funeral. Tracks were also co-written with Dan Auerbach, Ruby Amanfu, John Bettis, Pat McLaughlin, Natalie Hemby, Joy Oladokun, Paul Overstreet, Liz Rose, Aaron Lee Tasjan, Hannah Vasanth and Bobby Wood. Recorded during the fall of 2020 with a rhythm section that includes bassist Nick Movshon, noted for his work with Amy Winehouse and Bruno Mars, alongside drummer and rising solo artist, Aaron Frazer.   Yola experienced prejudice throughout her childhood and career and navigated these experiences, as well as homelessness in London and stress-induced voice loss to launch her solo career in 2016. She achieved breakout success with her debut album, Walk Through Fire, which landed her four GRAMMY® nominations including Best New Artist, critical acclaim and fans from Elton John to Estelle. www.iamyola.com https://www.instagram.com/iamyolaofficial/ https://www.facebook.com/iamyolaofficial/ https://twitter.com/iamyola

Benjamin Gibbard + Canvasback Music Unveil Tribute Album 'Ocean Child: Songs Of Yoko Ono'

BENJAMIN GIBBARD + CANVASBACK MUSIC / ATLANTIC RECORDS UNVEIL COMPILATION TRIBUTE ALBUM OCEAN CHILD: SONGS OF YOKO ONO  

SET FOR RELEASE ON FEBRUARY 18 (ONO’S 89^TH BIRTHDAY), COLLECTION HONORS THE ARTIST WITH NEW RENDITIONS OF HER SONGS PERFORMED BY EXEMPLARY LINEUP OF ARTISTS 

DAVID BYRNE & YO LA TENGO RELEASE COVER OF “WHO HAS SEEN THE WIND?” ALONGSIDE OFFICIAL LYRIC VIDEO 

LP ALSO INCLUDES STRIKING NEW VERSIONS OF ONO CLASSICS FROM DEATH CAB FOR CUTIE, JAPANESE BREAKFAST, SHARON VAN ETTEN, DEERHOOF, US GIRLS, THAO, THE FLAMING LIPS, AND MORE 

ACCOMPANYING PODCAST HOSTED BY GIBBARD + JENNY ELISCU SET TO ARRIVE WITH ALBUM AND FEATURE INTERVIEWS WITH PARTICIPANTS – WATCH PODCAST TRAILER HERE 

PRE-ORDERS AVAILABLE NOW HERE 

BUY/STREAM “WHO HAS SEEN THE WIND?” | WATCH OFFICIAL LYRIC VIDEO

 credit: Yoko Ono

Canvasback Music / Atlantic Records is proud to announce a new album celebrating the extraordinary work of multimedia artist, singer, songwriter, and activist Yoko Ono. Ocean Child: Songs of Yoko Ono arrives Friday, February 18 (coinciding with the artist’s 89^th birthday); pre-orders are available beginning today HERE. 

Imagined and curated by Benjamin Gibbard (lead singer, guitarist, and songwriter of Death Cab for Cutie), Ocean Child: Songs of Yoko Ono is comprised of 14 all-new versions of Ono’s tracks performed by a diverse range of rising artists and legendary stars including David Byrne and Yo La Tengo, whose collaborative cover of “Who Has Seen The Wind?” is available now at all DSPs and streaming services (listen here) alongside an official lyric video streaming now HERE.  

Ocean Child: Songs of Yoko Ono further showcases Ono’s work with striking and inspired renditions by such longtime devotees as Deerhoof and The Flaming Lips, both of whom, like Yo La Tengo, have enjoyed previous collaborations with the 2x GRAMMY® Award-winning artist.  

Also featured are brand new performances from Sharon Van Etten, Death Cab for Cutie, US Girls, Japanese Breakfast, Jay Som, Stephin Merritt (of Magnetic Fields), Thao, Sudan Archives, We Are KING, and Amber Coffman, all of which serve to accentuate Ono’s powerful artistic impact, lasting cultural relevance, and utterly unique approach to songcraft (full tracklist enclosed).  

A portion of the album’s proceeds will be donated to WhyHunger, a non-profit organization Ono has supported for decades in their efforts to transform our food system by building social justice and striking at the root causes of hunger and poverty.

Yoko Ono has been an innovative and influential force on music and art for more than seven decades, all while campaigning for peace on the world's stage. Of her legacy, project curator Benjamin Gibbard exclaims: “Yoko makes art that teaches all of us that peace is possible.” 

Ocean Child: Songs of Yoko Ono “was born out of both love and frustration,” Gibbard continues. “The ‘love’ part is pretty obvious; It is the seemingly bottomless well of inspiration and enjoyment Yoko Ono’s music has provided me and I must assume everyone else present here on this compilation. The ‘frustration’ part, on the other hand, goes back decades.  

“As an advocate, the tallest hurdle to clear has always been the public’s ignorance as to the breadth of Yoko’s work.  To put it into context; This is an artist whose output has run the gamut from avant-garde to bubblegum pop, often across a single album. For years, it has been my position that her songwriting has been criminally overlooked. She has consistently created melodies as memorable as those of best pop writers. As a lyricist, she has always written with poignance, sophistication and deep introspection.   

“Some of her best songs have been covered and compiled here by a generation-spanning group of musicians for whom her work has meant so much. It is my sincere hope that a new crop of Yoko Ono fans fall in love with her songwriting due in some small part to this album we have put together.” 

Ocean Child: Songs of Yoko Ono will be accompanied by an exclusive podcast, hosted by Gibbard and veteran music journalist Jenny Eliscu and featuring in-depth discussions of Ono’s music and legacy with many of the artists featured on the new album. Songs of Yoko Ono premieres via all podcast providers; an official trailer – featuring David Byrne, Wayne Coyne, Ben Gibbard, Thao, and Japanese Breakfast’s Michelle Zauner – is streaming now HERE.  

# # # 

Ocean Child: Songs of Yoko Ono

(via CANVASBACK MUSIC / ATLANTIC RECORDS)

Friday, February 18 

Tracklist:

1. Toyboat - Sharon Van Etten

2. Who Has Seen The Wind? - David Byrne and Yo La Tengo

3. Dogtown - Sudan Archives

4. Waiting For The Sunrise - Death Cab for Cutie

5. Yellow Girl (Stand For Life) - Thao

6. Born In A Prison - US Girls

7. Growing Pain - Jay Som

8. Listen, The Snow Is Falling - Stephin Merritt (of Magnetic Fields)

9. No No No - Deerhoof

10. Don't Be Scared - We Are KING

11. Mrs. Lennon - The Flaming Lips

12. No One Sees Me Like You Do - Japanese Breakfast

13. There Is No Goodbye Between Us - Yo La Tengo

14. Run Run Run - Amber Coffman 

# # # 

Reptaliens search for intelligent life in new "Take It" video & share expanded 2022 tour dates

Reptaliens search for intelligent life in new "Take It" music video & share expanded 2022 tour dates

Pre-order Multiverse here

VIDEO: "Take It" -
YouTube / Streaming Services

 

Today Portland band Reptaliens shares "Take It," the third single / video from its third album, Multiverse (Captured Tracks). You can pre-order the album here - the label exclusive first pressing comes with branded rolling papers, a nod to the fact that the band members' day job is working on an Oregon weed farm. The band has extended its winter 2022 tour dates, adding a west coast run supporting Spaceface and an appearance at the Treefort Festival.

"Come with us on a journey to find intelligent life while we dig through old footage. The truth is out there." - Reptaliens

***

Reptaliens are ready to be direct. After exploring surreal realms of high-concept synth-pop across two acclaimed albums, the Portland, Oregon, duo found newfound clarity in a stark, grounded approach. That may seem unexpected for such a colorful act—known for heady lyrics about conspiracy theories and transhumanism—but Cole and Bambi Browning have streamlined to the lean, propulsive essentials on their self-produced new LP, Multiverse.

Shelving the dreamy synths altogether and working without their other bandmates due to lockdown, Reptaliens reset, picking up their guitars and emphasizing the catchy attack that’s been there all along. Drawing inspiration from the spontaneous energy of the ’90s alternative canon, the pair hit a surge in momentum after a casual-turned-revelatory listen to Jane’s Addiction’s 1990 classic “Been Caught Stealing.” Without even aiming to make a Reptaliens song, they wound up penning the set’s lead single “Like a Dog,” a sun-soaked groove-bomb that’s blissfully unencumbered by sonic baggage. “That really kicked it off,” Cole recalls. “It was so fast and easy and fun that we said, ‘Let’s do more like that.’”

Oregon natives Bambi and Cole started Reptaliens in the mid-2010s as a multi-faceted vehicle for their most adventurous urges. Across their first two Captured Tracks albums —FM-2030 (2017) and VALIS (2019)—they established themselves as dedicated dreamers and deep thinkers, filling their wooly, homespun synth-pop with meditations on outré science fiction and philosophy. With some help from friends, they’ve been able to tackle big questions and explore vast sound worlds. Tapping Julian Kowalski (guitar), Bryson Hansen (synth), and Tyler Vergian (drums) for their previous albums and shows, Reptaliens have bewitched crowds during extended national tours with STRFKR, Turnover, and Turnstile.

By contrast, and somewhat by necessity, Multiverse brings those lyrical concerns closer to home. “I didn’t get lost in these worlds like I normally do writing lyrics,” says Bambi. “It was way more reflective of the world around me.” And so past source material like cults and Stockholm Syndrome gave way to more immediate muses—like the pair’s frequent recording companion, a Labrador/pit bull mix named Hambone. Meanwhile, the music grew in a fresh direction, a jangle-prone timeless form of subtly psychedelic guitar-pop,  finding occasional dark cul-de-sacs but ultimately tending toward the light and breeze.

Recording at home on the sleepy west side of Portland, with deer and woodpeckers regularly popping into their tree-lined backyard, the duo played all of the instruments themselves this time. The result is a departure that in fact only emphasizes the band’s melodic gifts. While Bambi’s distinctive bass-playing is more direct and driving, her airy vocals preserve Reptaliens’ soft-focus otherworldliness. Even when she’s singing about something as relatable as losing touch with her mind and body during isolation on “I Feel Fine,” there’s still an uncanny edge to her delivery. And so lines about sniffing glue and melting into the couch become reality-bending evocations of normal lockdown anxieties.

With mixing duties divided between Mikaelin “Blue” Bluespruce (Solange, Blood Orange, Mariah Carey) and Ross Brown from Kansas City bands Shy Boys and Fullbloods, Multiverse is a crisp pop record packed with surprising flourishes, from the crunchy chorus of “I Can’t Hide” to the smoky, serpentine guitar solo on “Jump.” On the recording front, Bambi and Cole applied lessons learned from making their 2020 EP, Wrestling, a synth-steeped darkwave detour that was the duo’s introduction to working alone from start to finish.

Those releases represent just two of the creative planes nested comfortably within the wider Reptaliens sphere, a prismatic notion that inspired the album’s title. Striking out into refreshing new directions at every turn, like its creators, Multiverse indeed feels like a symbolic crossroads. And one that only yields more possibilities with each visit.

TOUR DATES:

1/24 – Salt Lake City, UT – Kilby Court *
1/25 – Denver, CO – Larimer Lounge *
1/26 – Lawrence, KS – The Bottleneck
1/27 – Minneapolis, MN – 7th Street Entry *
1/28 – Chicago, IL – Beat Kitchen *
1/29 – Pontiac, MI – Pike Room *
1/30 – Cleveland, OH – Mahall’s *
2/1 – Pittsburgh, PA – Thunderbird *
2/3 – Boston, MA – Brighton Music Hall *
2/4 – New York, NY – Baby’s All Right *
2/5 – Philadelphia, PA – The Foundry *
2/6 – Washington DC – Songbyrd *
2/8 – Asheville, NC – Grey Eagle *
2/9 – Carrboro, NC – Cat’s Cradle *
2/10 – Atlanta, GA – Aisle 5 *
2/11 – Nashville, TN – The Basement *
2/13 – Dallas, TX – DaDa *
2/14 – Austin, TX – Empire *
2/16 – Phoenix, AZ – Rebel Lounge *
2/17 – San Diego, CA – Whistle Stop ^
2/18 – Santa Ana, CA – Constellation Room ^
2/19 – Los Angeles, CA – The Echo ^
2/20 – Oakland, CA – Starline Social Club ^
2/22 – Portland, OR – Mississippi Studio ^
2/23 – Seattle, WA – Substation ^
2/24 – Bellingham, WA – Boundary Bay Taproom ^
2/26 – Boise, ID – Neurolux ^
2/27 – Reno, NV – Holland Project ^
3/23 - 3/27 - Boise, ID - Treefort Music Fest

* = w/ Renata Zeiguer
^ = w/ Spaceface

 

Reptaliens
Multiverse
(Captured Tracks)
Digital Release Date: Jan. 21, 2022
Vinyl Release Date: March 25, 2022
[click here to pre-order]

Track Listing:

1. I Feel Fine
2. Like A Dog
3. In Your Backyard
4. Take It
5. Don't Wait For Me
6. Do You Know You Are Sleeping?
7. Go Away
8. Someone I Know
9. I Can't Hide
10. Jump

REPTALIENS LINKS:

Bandcamp
Twitter
Instagram

 

SEA CHANGE shares new single "Is There Anybody There". New album 'Mutual Dreaming' out Feb 11th

SEA CHANGE - Shares new single "Is There Anybody There" - New album 'Mutual Dreaming' due Feb 11th via Shapes Recordings

Photo credit: Simen Løvgren With her new album 'Mutual Dreaming' set for release Feb 11th via Shapes Recordings, Norwegian producer and singer Sea Change has shared a new single from the record, "Is There Anybody There". Speaking about the track, Sea Change said "'Is There Anybody There’ came from a very lonely place - it was in the middle of the lockdown and all the streets were empty, and I guess I can say for a lot of people it was quite lonely at times. But then the song developed into this mindset where I tried to put myself into the body of someone who feels this lonely and alienated all the time, who longs for contact and validation, someone that’s outside of the system, living on the fringes of society, longing to be understood." Listen to "Is There Anybody There" here: https://youtu.be/UEZSHX6b8HI   Music sometimes takes place in a world that’s more emotional than rational, less something you think about and more something you feel. That’s the home turf of the new album from Sea Change – Mutual Dreaming. With inspiration from the world of club music, another dreamspace where reality seems to slip, these songs come from a place where shadows of memories and feelings dance in the listener’s sub-consciousness. With its subtle, infectious sense of rhythm, delivered through fractured, hallucinogenic electronica, the music here moves through your body like a pulse, for a record that manages to be both enigmatic and elusive, and at the same time totally compelling. Sea Change is the project of Norway’s Ellen A. W. Sunde. From her debut album, 2015’s Breakage, to her music today, her sound has fluctuated and mutated – from airy, atmospheric pop to bubbling, shapeshifting electronica, but her creative vision hasn’t changed. With whatever style she’s working with, she’s on a mission to push and stretch it into new shapes, to explore the fringes of what the music can become. Across three records, it’s made for a musical vision that’s adventurous, hard to pin down, and even harder to predict. And on the latest of those albums, Mutual Dreaming, that’s more the case than ever before, as she follows her feelings in painting an intuitive, impressionistic world that wraps itself around the listener. Her previous album INSIDE was inspired by club culture in Los Angeles and Berlin – having spent some time exploring the hazy spaces of those clubs, she made her own version of that feeling in sound. In terms of time and place at least, Mutual Dreaming was born somewhere very different. Sunde relocated back to Norway, to the southern coastal town of Kristiansand, and had just started work on the new album when lockdown hit. So instead of the overstimulation of city life, the new album was made with a distinct absence of input from the outside world. Still, Sunde found she enjoyed it. “It was very quiet”, she says. "I could really concentrate on making new music. In a way, it was starting from scratch. The vibe was very explorative, and I had fun making it. It was easier to dive into it when there weren’t any distractions”. Sunde was keen to explore the physical side of music in the songs, the way it interacts with the body: “Music can be very primal. When you are going clubbing and dancing you can lose yourself in your own headspace, and be more in time with your body".  With her new music, Sunde wanted to make something fresh and fast, even setting herself the challenge of making the album as quickly as possible, so she could follow her ideas without overthinking or over-processing them. The approach to writing and production (with co-producing help on some of the songs from frequent collaborator Andrew Murray Baardsen at Luft Studio) was driven by impulse and instinct rather than planning, something that gave her freedom: “It was liberating for me, to not think things through too much. To be able to just go where the song could take me. I felt more relaxed when making this one. This album is more deconstructed and very intuitive. With INSIDE, the process was more thought-through. This one was more anti-intellectual and also very visual. I often see images when I produce music, like different scenes in movies''. Even the lyrics followed this approach, written first as filler to suit the sound of the track, and then later reworked and remoulded to serve its mood. “It was very intuitive and stream-of-consciousness”, she says. “Visceral and very introspective”. What emerged from that process is an album of fractured, spectral electronic music. Despite that fracturing, the sense of rhythm remains - the music on Mutual Dreaming is driven by a strange, morphing danceability, a clockwork sense of groove. Beats steer the songs and provide their overarching structure, like on opener “I Put My Hand Into A Fist”, where the other parts of the song, the shivering synths and fluttering snares, swirl like currents around it.“Everything we made is fluid” intones Sunde on that song, and that goes for the whole album, a feeling of nothing being fixed, a constant flux. As you move from song to song, the mood changes slowly, like a sky shifting from light to dark. All the way through, the texture and tone are perfectly engineered, to the point where you almost feel them physically – “Mirages” slowly rises, softly making contact with your senses, like the feeling of gentle waves washing over you, whereas “Night Eyes” pulls you, into murkier, heavier territory. Sunde says she sees the record visually, and it’s one that almost demands you close your eyes when listening to it, to let the music draw its shapes and scenes in your own imagination. The music’s deconstructed nature, the way it refuses to slip into any structure for very long, fits into the record’s theme. Sunde sees freedom in Mutual Dreaming, not only for her, in an emotional sense, but also for the outside listener, who is given the interpretive space by the album to follow their own path through it, somewhere in the floating interzone of its sounds. “I prefer a more abstract framework”, she says. “I rarely find it so interesting to write songs with a clear song structure - I'd rather explore a freer form”. So ultimately, and in a nod to its title, Mutual Dreaming is a record that can draw as much from its listener as from the artist herself. The blurry, murky world these songs inhabit moves restlessly, always dissolving and reforming – leaving it to the observer to find their own meaning in it. It’s a record where Sea Change found her way in fragments, letting her feelings guide her, and then knitted those fragments into a vision of dance music that’s free-floating and immersive, a space where reality’s grip seems to lose its hold. It’s beyond club music, beyond its inspirations, and in the sonic richness and detail you can find the power of something beyond words - put it on, and the normal world feels very far away. Mutual Dreaming artwork: Mutual Dreaming track list: 1. I Put My Hand Into A Fist 2. Is There Anybody There (Youtube) 3. That's Us 4. OK 5. Never Felt... (Youtube) 6. Night Eyes (Youtube) 7. Mirages 8. Mutual Dreaming 9. Rituals  Links: Instagram Facebook Twitter