I’ve got some very exciting news about Parlour to Parlour alumni The Brother Kite (Episode 19).
But first things first:
”Are you doing more videos?”
The question has been asked more times than I can remember, which is great, as it means you’ve been watching and enjoying. And the answer is: the tentative plan is to start them up again on a monthly basis in 2011. There are plenty of new and not-so-new artists out there who I’d love to chat with on camera, folks who’d love to virtually invite you all into their homes for some talk n’ tunes. But till then, I will be updating you on a semi-regular basis regarding the latest developments with the artists who make up the Parlour to Parlour Class of 2009.
And I’m really, truly stoked to be able to report that it appears The Brother Kite finally have a release date set for their third full-length album, Isolation. According to a text message I received yesterday morning from Mr. Matt Rozzero (drummer extraordinaire and fellow borderline-obsessive vinyl enthusiast), the CD will indeed be released by Clairecords, after months of uncertainty following the end of the band’s original contract with said label. The album should be hitting what few store shelves remain out there on Tuesday, September 14, 2010. That’s three short months from now, just enough time to get that fixation with summer party tunes out of your system.
And speaking of vinyl, there will likely be a vinyl version of Isolation released sometime in November of this year if we’re lucky, though it will be on a yet-to-be-confirmed label that is not Clairecords.
I’ve been fortunate enough to have a copy of the final mix of Isolation since March, and I can confidently say it’s a subtle yet stunning evolution in their super layered Phil Spector-meets-Brian Wilson-meets-4AD sound, one I’ve been hoping would happen for the past four years (namely, the subtraction of a little bit of that reverby sheen in favor of letting the music itself shine even brighter). The addition of a little bit of electronic beat texture here and some vaguely proggy keyboard parts there also puts just the right touch of spice into the mix. Not only that, Patrick Boutwell’s songs keep getting better, and at this point I’m loathe to pick just one or two favorites out of the album’s twelve tracks.
The band is currently streaming a few tracks from Isolation on their web site, including the one I believe to possess the biggest, baddest, hit-bound sound of em all – ”The Scene Is Changing.” Thom Monahan (the same guy who has worked with two artists I’ve listened to quite a bit over the last 12 months, Vetiver and Devendra Banhart) mixed Isolation, helping to finish off what is inarguably the band’s best work to date.
And yes, ”Searching For The Light” — which we previewed in a special acoustic version in Episode 19 of Parlour to Parlour — will indeed be on the album. It bears a re-airing, so here it is again. Enjoy!
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