Scotland's Neon Waltz delivered one of the finest guitar pop debut LPs to cross our path in 2017.
Titled 'Strange Hymns', the record was assembled in studios across the land, reflecting their travels, and growth both personal and musical.
A confident, chiming, mature-sounding debut full length, it was followed by yet more lung-bursting live shows as Neon Waltz travelled around the country.
Returning to their base in Caithness – Britain's most northerly mainland county, fact fans – Neon Waltz have pieced together a new EP to close this chapter, and open a fresh one.
Out now, 'Bring Me To Light' EP matches 'Strange Hymns' highlights to fresh recordings, further underlining their slow-burning potential.
A neat four track document, it's a real treat for fans and a chance for newcomers to get involved in their psych'd out guitar pop odyssey.
We're quite partial to new song 'Schoolhouse' – billed as "tender and sparse" it shows another side to the Scottish group, a subtle poignancy linked to their natural melodic flair.
Stream the EP in full below, then check out a track by track from Neon Waltz below.
'Bring Me To Light' has always been a storm live. People relate to it. It's a song that is ultimately about hope and your future but it's inspiration was a bit darker. It's about the horrible feeling of realising you will fuck anyone over for the thing you love and are dedicated to even if you know it's wrong – this band in particular.
'Watch It Fade' shows our darker side. We’ve always written these kinds of songs but we tend to dress them up in a way that disguises that. But we let 'Watch It Fade' do it’s own thing and the result of that is a repetitive and driving brute. Its hypnotic like a mantra or something. But in true fashion of ours it teeters on boiling point, then explodes. There should always be an explosion.
'Schoolhouse' is the opposite. It’s tender and its sparse. The song is king here add our only real intention was to not let the band get in the way of a simple & sensitive pop song. I think there’s an under-lying 60/70’s feel. And it’s a ballad for sure – in a Harry Nilsson sense of the word.
The EP closes with a tune dear to us. 'Enlightened By A Fall' has been with us for a long time but it was too delicate to have on 'Strange Hymns'. It would have been swamped among the madness and we didn’t want that for it. So here it sits naked – pretty much a piano and a voice – on the end of an EP where it has time and space to be heard and sink in. It’s the calm before a storm.
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'Bring Me To Light' is out now – pick up a copy HERE.
Related: Perfect Frame – The Patient Journey Of Neon Waltz
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