SO announce new releases for 2012/13: The Chevin / Zeus / Joshua Radin / Dinosaur Pile-Up !!!
“It is cruel, you know, that music should be so beautiful. It has the beauty of loneliness and of pain: of strength and freedom. The beauty of disappointment and never-satisfied love. The cruel beauty of nature, and everlasting beauty of monotony.” Thus spoke Benjamin Britten, one of the towering figures of 20th Century classical music. This quotation has been the guiding force and inspiration for SO Recordings since its foundation in 2010. The label’s debut release from American fusion roots foursome Duke & The King was an immediate chart hit and launched the brand name in the UK.
The summer of 2012 will mark a prolific slate of material from the label as they launch new releases from one of the best new Brit bands around, one of Canada’s hottest exports and the new album from one of America’s premier singer/songwriters.
The Chevin are from the north of England, Otley, Yorkshire to be precise and deliver what has been described as the sound of a scruffy Roy Orbison performing love songs penned by U2, Snow Patrol and Coldplay. Hauntingly recorded in the desert of El Paso, Texas they launch with the singles Drive, Blue Eyes and Champion followed by the album Borderland.
Zeus from Montreal follow a long line of Canadian acts who have rocked the world, think Neil Young, Rush and Gordon Lightfoot. But also think The Beatles, Badfinger, Nilsson, Boston, Thin Lizzy, Fats Domino, Michael Jackson and The Who. All these influential elements come together with music that bursts at the seams with energy and creativity, packed with freewheeling hooks, harmonies and riffs galore. Standby for the lightning bolt that is their infectious single Are You Gonna Waste My Time followed by the album Busting Visions.
Joshua Radin launched his recording career in 2006 and has subsequently achieved two top 40 US albums and a UK top 10 entry. His wistful meditations have earned him a super loyal following of fans and his songs have been used more than 100 times in various films and television series (from Grey’s Anatomy to American Idol to House). He’s the behind the scenes artist whose music you’ve definitely heard but might not know yet. His fourth album, Underwater is set to firmly break to the surface with a collection of outstanding material aided by a backing band that includes Benmont Tench (Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers), Jim Keltner (Bob Dylan, John Lennon) and string arranger Jimmie Haskell (Simon & Garfunkel).
Releases for 2013 are also being pencilled in – launching with a new album from Leeds’s bandDinosaur Pile-Up (named after the tangled collection of Apatosauruses in the thrilling chase scene from Peter Jackson’s King Kong remake). This will be their long awaited sophomore follow-up album to 2010’s critic friendly Growing Pains.
