Oxfordshire quartet Glass Animals have been hitting my inbox since February, but it wasn’t until last Tuesday’s release of Gooey did I really begin to take notice. It was early in the morning when I checked the EP out, and I’m not sure if it was because it was still dark out or my mood that morning, but the song “Gooey” couldn’t have been any more perfect. With frontman Dave Bayley’s catchy lyrics and infectious production, “Gooey” hits all the right notes (pun intended). The EP consists of the original “Gooey” track, “Holiest” feat. Tei Shi, and three remixes of “Gooey” from Gilligan Moss, Kingdom and Chester Watson.
Glass Animals is the first signee to mega Brit producer Paul Epworth’s Wolf Tone label in the UK. Epworth moved the band from their woodlands creative hub called The Shed to his studio in London to help the band refine and develop their sound. Combining their love of analog with digital Glass Animals have bee able to create a trippy-RnB-elecornic sound that’s hard not to fall into a groove with.
“Gooey” was just the beginning of the Glass Animal’s take over of 2014. With the EP out, the band has dropped a new song, “Pools,” off of their full-length album, ZABA, due out on June 10th via Harvest Records. The press release for ZABA gives a taste of what’s to come from the band’s next project:
“Inspired by Kanye West and Charles Darwin, Nina Simone and the Velvet Underground, ZABA is a rich and textured work, a very special record indeed. With Dave producing and Epworth as A&R and mentor, the studio became their home and the band were free to record, improvise and write at their own speed, making their sound a bigger, brighter, heavier and more intense experience than ever before.”
If “Gooey” and “Pools” are a sample of what to expect, I’m really looking forward to this project. I’ve yet to see them live, but hear their stage set up is pretty interesting with a show to match. With festival season well on its way, don’t be surprised to see Glass Animals show up on more bills. Until then, check out the Gooey EP, the “Gooey” music video, and their new single “Pools” below.
Gooey is available on iTunes or on vinyl signed by the band here.
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