LW Mag LW Magazine
Related Articles
Hot off the release of their new album, Growler Front, we catch up with New Academics to chat to them about it:
You have recently released your latest album entitled Growler Front. How would you best sum up this album?
It’s 10 tracks of New Academics, containing some lighter, poppier songs and a selection of darker tunes, but all groove-oriented.
Why the name Growler Front?
As a younger man, our guitarist spent a few months living as a hermit in a cave on a small, barren island off the coast of Corsica. The monthly storms that came sweeping in from the Western Mediterranean would swirl around the walls of the cave, producing a low growling sound. Early in the recording process, he said that moments on this album reminded him of the sense of isolation and vulnerability he felt during those storm fronts, hence the name ‘Growler Front’.
How does this album differ or compare to your previous albums?
Compares: We like to think that it is of the same quality in terms of production, performance and songwriting, if not better than previous efforts.
Differs: The album is shorter, more mellow and perhaps contains stronger opinions (in terms of the lyrical content) than the last two albums do.
What were some of the highlights through the recording process for Growler Front?
Recording the drums at Sumosound Studios was a personal highlight for me. The sessions become highly creative as the engineer, Peter Auret, and our drummer got to grips with tracking the parts and began to insert additional percussive textures in the tracks that have now become key elements in many of the songs. The guitar tracking, which took place at High Seas Studios, was also great as we had the luxury of spending a fair amount of time focussing on getting good tones out of the instruments and amplifiers.
How have New Academics fans responded to the album?
The album has not been out for long, but the feedback thus far has been favourable.
Which tracks mean the most to you and why?
Personally, Book of Matches covers material close to my heart and thus is a favourite. The same can be said of Sands. However, it’s difficult to pick favourites at this early stage, it can take years and a break from the material in order to know which tracks are the keepers.
Will we be seeing a music video for any of the tracks?
No, our budget is limited and producing the album has pretty much emptied our coffers.
Back in 2010 your went on a hiatus and returned in 2014. What do you think the hiatus did for the band and its members?
The break gave us a chance to focus on alternative areas of our life, and to perform and record other music. Thus we came back to the band armed with new sets of influences and experiences that influenced the writing, performance and production of this album.
How would you best explain the personalities of the band members?
Our personalities are the product of our life-experiences, plus some genetics – the old nurture vs nature balance of causation.
What’s next for New Academics?
Some shows, and most noticeably Oppikoppi in August.
