New Zealand outfit Phoebe Rings recently announced their debut album, Aseurai, is out June 6th on Carpark Records.
They’ve also shared a new track, ‘Get Up’, which sees them switching gears as bassist Benjamin Locke takes up lead vocals. Inspiration comes from Benjamin’s fascination with disco (in particular the Nile Rogers productions of Chic & Sister Sledge) and the opening scene of The Matriix, an intriguing combination.
The results are rather marvellous, like Philadelphia soul sound grooving with M83: the illuminating strings and a plaintive yet dreamy delivery that laconically journeys in the dusk, serenely through luscious analogue synths and into a sumptuous and addictive disco flecked chorus. What a luxurious treat!
Of the track, bassist Benjamin Locke, who takes lead vocals for the first time on a Phoebe Rings song says “This was written in a period where I was listening to a lot of disco, particularly Nile Rodgers productions (Chic, Sister Sledge). Around a similar time I rewatched The Matrix. In the opening scene, Trinity is being chased by agents and says to herself ‘Get up Trinity, just get up.’ I thought the notion of willing yourself to get up could be interesting to play around with and that scene stuck with me for a bit. In older disco tracks there is often this imperative language (‘Everybody Dance!,’ ‘Leave your cares behind’) – ‘Get up, just get up’ just kind of fell into place. We gave it a pretty comprehensive disco treatment with lots of strings, bvs and a searing Arp solo.”
‘Get Up’ is accompanied by a visualiser created by Locke – who also built Phoebe Rings’ Starfall game, a 16-bit single player which merges their love of gaming and cats – utilising Blender to explore low-poly animation akin to early games on PlayStation and Nintendo 64. “The original model that I used was based on Fox Mulder from X-files,” he says. “I adapted this model to create each individual band member. The idea of driving away from the city and into the dark spoke to ideas in the song of physical movement, mental health and transition between two states. The characters are confidently driving into the night, facing it head on.”
While Phoebe Rings was originally a solo project of Choi’s, Aseurai marks a shift with contributing songwriting credits from the whole band, which includes Guitar/synthesist Simeon Kavanagh-Vincent, bassist Benjamin Locke and drummer/producer Alex Freer. The four musicians cut their teeth working on other notable NZ projects such as Princess Chelsea, Fazerdaze, Tiny Ruins, AC Freazy, Sea Views and Lucky Boy. With a more ambitious collection of instruments, Choi says this album heralds the start of true collaboration: “I feel more precious about this LP because it includes everyone’s gems.” The broth is richer with more cooks in the kitchen, and the brewing of textures creates a distinct ‘Phoebe Rings’ sound.
If the EP was spacey, then Aseurai settles on earth, rooted in tangible moments. “Without getting too gloomy, it’s a weird world out there. A lot has changed in the world since the EP came out,” says Kavanagh-Vincent on this transformation. The album delves into hope and longing across all possibilities, and this exploration of holding on and letting go is organically threaded throughout. Across ten songs, Phoebe Ring’s storytelling ranges from tongue-in-cheek musings on gentrification to tender autobiographical memories.
Photo credit: Frances Carter
