BRAIDS RELEASE BUBBLING SHOEGAZE LOVE ANTHEM “APPLE”
EUPHORIC RECALL OUT APRIL 28 VIA SECRET CITY RECORDS
Braids have releases their new single “Apple”, the latest peek at their forthcoming album Euphoric Recall, out April 28, 2023 on Secret City Records. Among the most joyous moments in the Braids discography, “Apple” is a bubbling anthem of symphonic shoegaze, a celebration of seeing new possibilities in the eyes of a lover, acknowledging past loss with a new state of heart that’s been opened and filled.
Singer Raphaelle Standell-Preston sings of sweet sentiment on “Apple” that’s mirrored in the bursting instrumentation recorded live off the floor. Percussionist Austin Tufts marches and taps with feel-good intent evoking early Animal Collective while Taylor Smith’s arpeggiated synth sequence plays aggressively off the softer sonics for a heightened, sparkling shoegaze effect.
On “Apple” we see the band writing and arranging for a string ensemble for the very first time. Swells of orchestral energy bursting at the seams, carrying the listener through the overwhelming maelstrom of love that Raphaelle recounts on this open-hearted track. “We didn’t have to work hard on this one,” they stated. “We could just jump in and enjoy the ride of it.”
“Apple” follows the release of “Evolution”, a clear eyed and calm banger that has been called “a quietly propulsive track whose dialed-in lyrics allow the electronics to shine.” It was also featured on Spotify’s Chill Vibes and All New Indie playlists among others, as well as Sirius XM’s Chill, XMU Download 15, The Verge, and KCRW’s 5 Songs To Hear This Week. The album’s first single “Retriever” is also out now, a luscious and meandering 9-minute journey that has been raved as a track that “builds and glides over an expansive runtime.”
A freer and wholly anew effort, Euphoric Recall finds the trio abandoning strategy, burning it down, and realizing their love record. Love, all of it; the unbound bliss, the budding impulses, and the messy imperfections, a supernova swirled up in a suite of bold, melodic, symphonic pop songs surrendered to the present. The complexity of love and healing is not a new subject for Braids, but the vantage from which they see and sense it here is. Standell-Preston’s lyrics draw generously from her heart space, often writing on the spot, in just a few takes. Lines are vivid, exhilarating, and evocative, a directness indicative of fully knowing oneself and engaging the moment. As songs emerged, the rhythms and textures became brighter and looser, brimming with life.
Written, recorded, self-produced, and mixed at their Montréal studio, the music of Euphoric Recall is both unrushed and urgent, lush yet captured with in-the-room clarity. Elements weave in and out, shading a rich universe without crowding it. Tufts brought a sharpened ear to sessions after producing records for Devon Welsh, Tess Roby, and others, sensing what songs needed from his drums, be it subtle balance or cathartic, jazz-inflected fills. Smith arrived from the depths of solo experiments and studio work, an ever-thorough multi-instrumentalist and sound designer with a renewed feel for fun and a move-forward mindset. Along with the album’s thematic sensuality, Standell-Preston carried the pulse of her club-minded project, Blue Hawaii, adding to their shared desire for new material to groove more viscerally. Together they also arranged strings, with contributions and notations from Edwin De Goeij (who also plays the piano on several tracks).
Braids have regenerated their creative selves with every record. The Montréal trio moves intuitively, harnessing an emotional honesty and meticulous craft rooted in a willingness to let go and trust in one another; they immerse fully into the space of a full-length album. This devotion to exploring their art, together, has made for one of the more daring and fluid catalogs in contemporary experimental pop over the past decade. They see their story as a series of actions and reactions, a collective expression that swings like a pendulum between open-hearted freeness and process-driven precision.
Formed in 2007 in Alberta, Braids have solidified a decade-long reputation for their musical ingenuity and established themselves as one of Canada’s most acclaimed art rock bands, garnering two Polaris Music Prize shortlists and winning the 2016 JUNO Award for Alternative Album of the Year. With Standell-Preston’s vocals as the pillar of their sound, Braids weave organic and electronic elements together amidst a lyrical landscape that is intimate, explosive, and emotionally-immersive. They have supported or toured with artists such as Future Islands, Toro Y Moi, The Antlers, Wye Oak, Purity Ring, and Friendly Fires along with festival appearances around the world including Glastonbury, Primavera, Osheaga, Hopscotch, and SXSW. Across four full-length studio releases, their music has earned widespread critical acclaim from Pitchfork, The New York Times, The Fader, Consequence, Stereogum, Exclaim!, The Line of Best Fit, Uncut, and Clash Magazine among many others.
Braids
Euphoric Recall
(Secret City Records)
Release Date: April 28, 2023
Pre-Save Euphoric Recall HERE
Artist Links
Background Photo Credit: Mélissa Gamache
SPILL NEWS: BRAIDS ANNOUNCE CANADIAN TOUR DATES | NEW LP ‘EUPHORIC RECALL’ OUT THIS MONTH
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: GEORGE HARRISON – ALL THINGS MUST PASS (50th ANNIVERSARY EDITION)
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: JOHN LENNON – JOHN LENNON/PLASTIC ONO BAND – THE ULTIMATE COLLECTION (SUPER DELUXE BOX SET)
SPILL FEATURE: IT’S ABOUT THE MUSIC – EVERYTHING ELSE IS SECONDARY – A CONVERSATION WITH KENNETH WOMACK – AUTHOR OF JOHN LENNON, 1980: THE LAST DAYS IN THE LIFE
