Electric Guest are grooving their way into 2017 early with the release of their brand-new single, ‘Back For Me’ – the second official release from their forthcoming sophomore album, Plural, which has just been announced for release February 17 via Dew Process / UMA.
The up-tempo single is simultaneously glamorous and minimalist in its approach, revolving around a basic formula of clapping drums, a strutting bassline, bright guitar notes and cooing layers of falsetto vocals that all stand out on their own while perfectly combining in a mix that straddles the line between tender indie rock and a neo-disco jam.
LISTEN TO ‘BACK FOR ME’ HERE:
‘Back For Me’ is a side-step to ‘Dear To Me’, the duo’s synth-driven first single from Plural. Released late last year, the no less infectious single feautured a cameo from Haim on backing vocals, and was Electric Guest’s first official release since their 2012 breakout debut album, Mondo. Premiering on Stereogum, it announced their return with soulful style and a terminally chill flow that seamlessly suited the rise of Australian summer.
Recorded in their hometown of LA and, Plural is a record that finds Electric Guest’s Asa Taccone and Matthew Compton at the absolute top of their game, infusing their version of electronic r’n’b with an even more confident, adventurous spirit than even Mondo displayed. Co-produced by the duo, along with the likes of John Hill (Rihanna, Santigold, M.I.A.), Cole MGN (Nite Jewel, Ariel Punk’s Haunted Graffiti) and Lars Stalfors (HEALTH, Coldwar Kids), the album is much more than the sum of its parts – using spare instrumentation and recording techniques to produce vibrant and joyful pop music that focuses purely on the power of the band’s songwriting and performing abilites.
When it came to record Plural, Taccone admits that he forced himself to simplify and look for that joy in writing and recording that had originally inspired the band’s debut album and won them so much success.
“I just realized that working quickly and intuitively is part of the magic of making music,” says Taccone. “I think a lot of music suffers when people get into a studio and feel like the process has to be this heady thing. When you go in with expectations, it wears down the levity and the fluidity that the natural process should have. And that’s not to say there weren’t songs on this record that were puzzles we had to figure out, but making music is supposed to be fun, and it was important for us to get back to that.”
That freewheeling sense of looseness Taccone rediscovered also opened the doors to several off-the-cuff collaborations, including an impromptu collaboration with baroque pop star Joanna Newsom and the aforementioned Haim sisters. It also led to a new level of comfort both at the mixing board and behind the microphone. That relaxed, go with the flow approach permeates Plural, encouraging the listener to shed all their preoccupations, and sing or dance along with its 12 glorious tracks.
‘Back For Me’ is just a tantalising taste of what we can expect once Plural finally drops February 17.
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