Fresh off the release of their violin-driven pop punk single “Just Make Sure You’re Happy,” Texas-based quintet Postcards From The Moon are back with a new music video and single called “Wish You The Best.” Violinist Rolando Valentin Ramon sets down the high-pitched instrument and picks up a guitar for the finely tuned ballad.
“Wish You The Best” comes from the band’s new EP, Me Without You, out now on all online platforms. The song begins with quick and sweet piano riff before launching into a swaying groove and lyrics that could be the millennial anthem for a failed friendship.
“I wrote this song about an ex-friend of mine,” says vocalist Caleb Rangel. “It’s about me not holding grudges for the way things ended and simply wishing her the best. I only want her to be happy. The lyrics were influenced by a Snapchat story. Another friend of mine was going through something similar and was posting photos with captions that really got to me. I used a lot of her original words as lyrics in this song, after getting the ‘okay’ from her of course.”
Me Without You is the sophomore EP from the self-proclaimed “Sad Boys of San Antonio” and is mostly a reflection and acceptance of things we cannot change. It was produced by Kevin W. Gates (Never Shout Never, Stephen Jerzak, The Ready Set).
LINKS:
https://www.pftmband.com
https://www.facebook.com/pftmband
https://instagram.com/pftmband
https://twitter.com/pftmband
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Fjords – Sulwyn
Fjords, Wales’ finest purveyors of indie electronica return with their new single, “Sulwyn” on 14th July, 2014. “Sulwyn” pronounced, sill-win is a traditional Welsh christian name that means,’bright as the sun’. The track is released via the band’s own Crookedman Records.
Drawing on influences that range from Japan, Gary Numan, Joy Division and Simple Minds “Sulwyn” marks a shift towards a more thoughtful late seventies, early eighties sound. Singer Sonny Dagur
penned the lyrics whilst in Brooklyn and describes the song as ‘a bit of a letter to myself’. “Sulwyn” was recorded at Monnow Valley and is FJORD’s fourth independent release. The band choose the striking artwork to accompany the release by emerging digital artist Rognvald Leslie of The Faroe Islands.
Formed in 2010 Fjords came together following a Steve Lamacq interview on BBC 6 Music. At the time Sonny’s old band, Don’t Tread On Spiders were breaking up, Sonny seized the moment and used the Lamacq radio interview to advertise for band members. Happily for all concerned Fjords were the result.
Fjords play The London Welsh Sessions on Friday 6th June at The London Welsh Centre, Gray’s Inn Road WC1 plus a special show on 11th July from Acapela Studios, (site of the recent Gruff Rhys American Interiors album launch) where their set will be streamed worldwide from this converted chapel outside Cardiff. Fjords plan to further experiment with new technologies hosting a series of live Google Hangout chats plus using QR Code and NFC tags on posters allowing fans to download “Sulwyn” for free.
Fjords are Sonny Dagur – Vocals & guitar, Alex Mann – Bass & vocals, Scott Bradburn – Guitar, Gareth Bodman – Synths, Hannah Mathias – drums & drum pads.
Airplay support for Fjords includes Amazing Radio, BBC Radio Wales & Nation Radio.
Links:
http://www.myspace.com/wearefjords
http://www.twitter.com/wearefjords
http://www.wearefjords.com
http://www.wearefjords.co.uk
http://www.soundcloud.com/wearefjords -
San Eco – Perspectrum
San Eco combine the unique approach of two musicians, one with a footing in innovative electronica, the other in bombastic indie pop. Five years in the making, their debut album ‘San Eco’ finds them drawing influences from Fela Kuti to Slint, Nathan Fake to R.E.M, into a delicate and emotive electronic alt rock treat.
Morris Cowan (Adam Taylor) cut his teeth in the electronic music scene in the mid-noughties, and since then has released for Nottingham based Wigflex imprint and German label Zaubernuss. He has built up notable admirers, having had his tracks championed by Mary Ann Hobbs and Tom Ravenscroft on their BBC Radio 6 Music shows.
Tom Edney’s brand of alternative indie songwriting has also earned him a considerable following. Never shying away from ambition, his alternative rock music has him drawing inspiration from varied subjects like Victorian Gothic Monasteries on Manchester housing estates to his Lynchian inspired dreams. His efforts such as ‘Hands On’ and ‘The Manchester Underground EP’ have earnt him plays on many stations around the world, including BBC Radio 6 Music.
It was during the recording of Cowan’s ‘Six Degrees’ and Edney’s ‘The Manchester Underground EP’, that the two actually became aware of each other’s music – listening in through a wall between neighboring studios. Cowan tabled an offer of a session, and five years of creativity and hard work later, they are finally ready to release their debut album ‘San Eco’, on Manchester multimedia label ‘Beatphreak.’
LINKS:
https://www.facebook.com/sanecosounds
https://beatphreak.co.uk/artists/san-eco -
2Square & Mark Gardener – Chained
2Square has teamed up with RIDE’s Mark Gardener for their video for the new single titled ‘Chained’. The video captures the mood and moments of the song in that it appears as a quiet dream. An almost solemn memory of a moment captured more with feeling than with recollection. The director chooses subtlety over substance and it works to an almost relaxing state, perfectly complimenting the track.
The song is done in an almost avant-garde style of songwriting with a jazz-fusion style piano alongside the gaze-stylings of Mark Gardener and the post-modern wrapping that is the representation of the track but, when you listen again, there is so much more going on under the surface. Both electric and stylistically. Listen to this a few times for the sake of artistic comprehension. You won’t be disappointed.
‘Chained’ is available now via Mark Gardener’s own Bandcamp and will appear on other streaming and sales platform soon (date to be announced). Look forward to several more singles from this collaboration to be announced this summer.
ABOUT ‘CHAINED’
Recorded in Haeri’s small Parisian smoky apartment in the Strasbourg-Saint-Denis area, Gardener notes that this is “up there with my favorite collaborations ever”, saying this will “hopefully take our minds away from all current madness we’re living in”. Written by Stephan Haeri and Mark Gardener with Gardener’s lyrics, this single was mixed by Stephan Haeri and mastered by Mark Gardener at OX4 Sound.
Mark is best known as a songwriter, lead vocalist, and guitarist with shoegaze trailblazers Ride. He also owns and runs the OX4 Sound recording studio. Over the past 20 years, Mark has produced and mixed the work of many highly respected artists, producers and bands including The Brian Jonestown Massacre, Robin Guthrie, Telepopmusik, Dive Index, Rinocerose, Ulrich Schnauss, Man With No Name, Hopewell, Jam+Spoon, Mikel Erentxun, Dead Horse One, Cat Martino and Swervedriver, along with scoring the soundtrack for the Mojo award-winning film ‘Upside Down’ (The Creation Records Story). Mark now brings this knowledge and experience to his new purpose-built studio.
“I met Stephan through a mutual friend – Melanie Bauer, a well-known DJ on Paris radio. I had known and become close lifelong friends with Melanie since meeting her to interview on her program during an early Ride promo tour in Paris. Our paths with Stephan had crossed a few times but Melanie basically set up this recording session, thinking it could be a great combination. Stephan had a small apartment, which he lived in and had turned into a studio. I always loved to visit Paris so I was happy to go and spend a week with Stephan at his apartment, where I also stayed for the best part of a week,” says Mark Gardener.
“Stephan had some loose instrumental ideas and I got to work with lyrics and vocal topline ideas in reaction to these instrumental sketches I was hearing and then Stephan would mess around with my vocal lines. I think I popped out for food now and again, but we basically didn’t stop for a week until the songs were written and recorded. Stephan mixed it as we were going and then finished the mixes when I had gone back to England. This and the other two tracks are among my lifetime favorite collaborations.
Earlier, Telepopmusik released the highly acclaimed single ‘Sound’, featuring vocals by Mark Gardener, for which they released an intriguing video by Japan’s Toshiaki Toyoda. The vocals for that particular track were recorded during the same Paris session that spawned this new single ‘Chained’.
“I wrote ‘Chained’, reflecting on my old home in Oxford, which had become a non-stop nightclub during a time post Ride breakup, when I was living alone. All got a bit out of control for a while and I had some great parties and friends, but one, in particular, would always show up late at my house when I was working in my attic studio. He was a bit of a walking chemistry set, so he would always show up with substances. I was not in the best head-space at that time and was trying to get away from substances, which was not so easy when it kept on coming through my front door,” explains Gardener.
“We’d always end up having big and good nights drinking, getting high and listening to records until dawn for a period; hence the line ‘Chained till dawn to find a new way’ lyric. I knew this was slowly dragging me down so, in the end, I packed up my car with a friend and we drove to the Medieval Wilds of France in search of a new life. I ended up living in France for four years, experiencing a much-needed break from that life. It was just what the doctor ordered! France and nature basically refueled me and put back everything I felt I had lost after Ride and then a few lost party years in Oxford after that.”
‘Chained’ is available now via Mark Gardener’s own Bandcamp and will appear on other streaming and sales platform soon (date to be announced). Look forward to several more singles from this collaboration to be announced this summer.
CREDITS
Written and recorded in Paris
Music by Stephan Haeri and Mark Gardener
Words by Mark Gardener
Mixed by Stephan Haeri
Mastered by Mark Gardener at OX4 SoundLINKS:
https://www.ox4sound.co.uk
https://www.facebook.com/ox4sound
https://markgardener.bandcamp.com
https://soundcloud.com/ox-4-sound
https://twitter.com/OX4Sound
https://twitter.com/MarkGardener
https://www.instagram.com/ox4sound
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCFFgoaqoGlLaRjvfNf-vUoQ