7 years after the release of their sophomore album, Life’s A Show, Scottish duo Martin and James are heading back out on a German tour in April 2020, playing tracks from their first two albums along with debuting new songs from their as yet untitled third LP, due for release later in the year.
Friends before they were ever band-mates, Martin and James remained in constant contact over the 7-year hiatus, even while pursuing solo and side projects. Then, in early 2019, with Martin living in Berlin and James living in Scotland, they began exchanging song ideas and melodies via audio files, with two of the resultant tracks, “Goldmine” and “Sea of Old Dreams” getting their first public airing in live sessions at the Pearce Institute.
These early exchanges, coupled with later songwriting sessions in person, have sown the seeds for the long awaited third album.
Martin said “It’s been interesting and exciting experience, using an unconventional method writing and recording our new songs. The fact that we’re living in two countries makes the process very different from what we’ve been used to with our previous records.
We’ve been sending each other songs as well as audio files, so it’s almost like a game where we’re trying to build on tracks we may not have heard before, by adding or taking away certain sounds and melodies. Our voices have been recorded in our house or bedroom which has added a more intimate and personal feel to the music.
We set out to record a small EP for our Milow support tour, however, we realised that the songs we had written were too strong for an EP and decided instead to commit to a full album. We caught a bit of momentum so decided to roll with it.
James adds “We’re especially excited about returning to Germany where it all started for us and playing to our fans who haven’t seen us play for a long time. I’m pretty sure some of them think we are dead? Haha! But in all seriousness, the German fans have been the main reason for us wanting to continue releasing more material. Some of our best memories have been playing in Germany and the reactions from our audience!”
Martin and James will return next year - in April 2020 - for a German tour, both debuting their new material as well as dusting off old songs!
Dates for the tour and launch of the new album are being worked on, with an announcement expected in 2020.