Special Friend have become the masters of weaving elegant and sophisticated pop musical webs while staying true to their DIY roots. The French/American duo (Guillaume on guitar and vocals, Erica on drums and vocals) manage to create a sound like no other band. When they play live, audiences marvel at the huge, intricate structures the band construct, while falling in love with the crystal-clear vocal melodies that are threaded in between the shards of guitar and the rattle of the drums. How can a duo achieve so much? UK audiences will be able to ponder this question in March: Special Friend are coming over from France to do a substantial tour of the UK.
The new album is more diverse that the last, with the high-tempo indiepop of first single ‘Breakfast’ (out today – watch the video below), the majestic, Yo La Tengo-like dreampop of ‘Clipping’ and the country-ish, gentle, homesick melancholy of ‘Isolation’. Final track ‘OOO’ is a bold piece of Krautrock-inspired experimentation; ‘Mold’ is a beautiful slice of slowcore and opener ‘Paint A Picture’ is modern pop at its catchiest and most direct.
‘Clipping’, the album title, refers to the discipline of pruning growth back, removing dead wood to create a perfectly shaped tree with abundant blossoms: an accurate description of the album, and of the songs that hang from its elegant branches. The album artwork is by Erica: Special Friend are in control of every aspect of this elegant artefact. Clipping will be released March 20.
Clipping:
- Paints a picture
- Clipping
- Isolation
- Theoretical
- Breakfast
- Mold
- Nothing
- Unwound
- Mustard
- Village
- Sanctuary
- OOO
