Round Hill Music's in house label, Round Hill Records has announced they have signed a record deal with Louisiana based quartet, Royal Teeth. Round Hill Records will release their forthcoming EP, Amateurs, due Nov. 18.
"I saw Royal Teeth at Jazzfest this past spring, and they were amazing,” said Round Hill Music CEO and President Josh Gruss. “I immediately started exploring a way to work with them. Serendipitously we made that happen. I would have thought they were already signed to a major. The songs on this EP are all so great that we found it really hard to pick a single. Great hit songs are what it's all about, and there are several on this EP. The potential for this record is huge."
In 2011, the effervescent electronic pop of the band’s debut EP, Act Naturally, attracted the attention of Dangerbird Records, which re-released both that project and its full-length follow-up, 2013’s Glow. The anthem “Wild,” driven by the vocal chemistry between singers Nora Patterson and Gary Larsen, propelled the band to multiple TV, film and video game placements, guest appearances on Last Call with Carson Daly and American Idol (at the personal invitation of fellow Louisiana native Harry Connick, Jr.) and slots at festivals, including Austin City Limits, Bonnaroo, Firefly, SXSW, CMJ, New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival and the Voodoo Experience.
Read More: SXSW 2014: Royal Teeth Explain Their Unique Set List Designs
Both the sounds and the overarching themes on Amateurs are tougher, more mature and more sure handed than Royal Teeth’s previous outings. On Amateurs, Patterson’s lead vocals are showcased front and center, emerging from the more layered production of earlier releases. “Kids Conspire,” the band’s lead single, buoys her up on synths and propulsive, Afropop-inflected beats, as she demands, “take me all the way up, take me all the way up.”
“Children have a wild imagination,” Patterson explains. “They make up a plan for what they’re going to be when they grow up. They don’t hold back in terms of what they feel like they can accomplish, which is something that a lot of people lose over time.” In writing the song, she wanted to channel that untamed joy, the feeling of unlimited potential and steadfast conviction. “It’s about going back to when you thought you could do anything,” she said. “It’s nice to remind yourself of that.”
Promoting Act Naturally and Glow, Royal Teeth averaged more than 200 live dates per year, earning a rep for exuberant, sweaty, high-energy live shows. The addition of guitarist Thomas Onebane has also led the band to take more risks in the studio. “Thomas was a game-changer creatively,” says drummer Josh Hefner. “He’s a secret weapon. We spent a little more time in the studio—more experiments, more fine-tuning. And it was more fun, with less pressure.”
Royal Teeth recently announced they will embark on a Fall tour with Rooney.
Photo by Ollie Alexander
For more information and tour dates, visit royalteethmusic.com.
