by Dan Goldin (@paintingwithdan)
MEMORIALS always to rise to the occasion. Whenever presented with a challenge, most of which are self-imposed, the duo of Verity Susman (Electrelane) and Matthew Simms (Wire, It Hugs Back) soar beyond limitations. All Clouds Bring Not Rain, the band’s second studio album, finds the pair experimenting with the capabilities of what vintage recording equipment can offer when you’re restricted from the endless digital realm of constant manipulation. If you’ve ever seen them live, you already know the band are contorting any expectations one might have of what two people can conceivably do, and they take it one step further in the studio, bridging complexity with sonic ease. Due out on March 27th via Fire Records (Tropical Fuck Storm, Jane Weaver, Monde UFO), their self-produced new album was recorded in large part in a barn in the remote woods of France, allowing Susman and Simms to explore the line between surging krautrock, lounge-tinged post-punk, kaleidoscopic folk, 60’s prog, and psych pop in a way that feels impossibly natural and inherently free. It’s a phenomenal album with an obscene attention to detail from a band that truly know how to make the most of their environment.
“Dropped Down The Well,” the record’s fourth single, has become a staple of the band’s live show, and it’s easy to see why. Built on a ripping rhythm with gorgeously insistent bass and a spring-loaded drum beat, the song is buzzing with propulsive energy and a wildly engaging sense of melody that has become synonymous with Susman’s songwriting. With the constant hum of synths and a scene stealing organ lead, the duo snake around the structure with a radiantly optimistic tonality for a song about being at the bottom of the well. Simms describes the song as a metaphor for “retaining hope in the face of a disaster,” a timeless sentiment that feels especially important these days. From the hypnotic groove to the swirling of the vocal melody and the push and pull of organ and bass, MEMORIALS are locked in and absolutely glowing in spite of the surrounding dread.
Speaking about the song, Simms shared:
“We’re always keen to be looking forward, so for touring the last record we wanted at least one new song in the set and this was it. It’s a good one to play live, with its twists and turns and a proper chorus! It was nice to see the reaction it received - I particularly remember the enthusiastic audience response last summer at some of the French festivals, in particularly La Route Du Rock and also an amazing little festival in Saint-Cadou, and feeling reassured about where we were heading with the new record.
There is a beautiful, old wishing well in the gardens of the Cotton-Powell museum near to me… it’d be one of the better ones to be dropped down! We had fun working together on the words… the word play, the imagery and mixed metaphors - retaining hope in the face of disaster! A pretty handy thing to remember! This song came together fairly effortlessly and is a good memory of our time working on All Clouds… and while recording, we had the organ through the amazing, if broken, ‘Orgaphon’ amp at the St Remi studio - sometimes you can get what your chasing in your head!”
Susman added:
“The song is about what happens when you get dropped down a well… well, metaphorically anyway. I like the danceable bleakness of it - a characteristic of many of my favourite songs - and I love playing it live. Because it’s a track that we developed through playing at gigs, it made sense to make a video that captures the energy of the live performance.”