Rupert Angeleyes
Pillow Talk (Pirates Press)
There's a wonderful mystery about Rupert Angeleyes. Is that the name of a single artist, or a band? Or, like Alice Cooper, both? We're not entirely sure, but we're ok with that too. We don't need a huge amount of backstory when diving into the Rupert Angeleyes psych/dream pop pool that's presented to us on Pillow Talk.
They tricked us from the off; despite no instruction on the label or sleeve, this 12" vinyl has to be played at 45rpm. So we had a very weird listening experience when we first dropped the needle at 33rpm. To Rupert Angeleyes' immense credit, it wasn't necessarily a bad listening experience at 33rpm.
"Though a songwriter at heart, this album is a product of listening, tinkering, and loving recorded sounds," they told us on a handwritten note that arrived with the album. "It's been an odyssey."
You can tell. Pillow Talk is this project's third album, released on April 20 for Record Store Day, and it really is an experience. Recorded in Los Angeles and Minneapolis and Milwaukee, each of the seven tracks feels like dream journal entries.
"I can only talk to you at night, I don't want to see you in the light," they sing on "In the Light." That seems a bit rude on the surface, but it seems that dear Angeleyes can't deal with real life, singing "In the morning light you feed your pets while I look for my contact lens."
"Palm Springs" is an ode to the California desert destination, and it details experiences that many of us have had there: "Ma Cherie, share a lawn chair with me, let my sunscreen drip on your swimsuit." Yup, sounds like Palm Springs.
The sleeve art too portrays open curtains revealing a swimming pool, cocktail glasses and sunglasses on the bed. This dreamy vacation vibe couldn't be better timed, making this entire listening experience a joy!
Final note -- they trick us again at the very end of the record. A short refrain is deliberately jumped back, meaning that the listener is caught in a loop. It took us a minute to realize what was happening, and we laughed out loud, alone in our office.
That's an interesting use for the vinyl format.
Chase Atlantic
Chase Atlantic (Warner Records)
Milky white vinyl
Warner has rereleased Chase Atlantic's self-titled debut album for the first time ever on vinyl, as a special treat for Record Store Day.
The Australian trio's story is an interesting one. They formed simply to audition for The X Factor, but crashed out in week two of season four, placing 11th. But what do those reality judges know? Adam Lambert didn't win American Idol, and he sings for fricking QUEEN now.
Anyway, the tunes on the debut earned Chase Atlantic over three billion streams. That's three BILLION. When dropping the needle onto the "milky white" vinyl (their words), it's obvious why these songs have such wide appeal.
Balancing precariously on the line that separates R&B and electro-pop, tunes such as "Into It," "Swim" and "Consume" (the latter featuring the talents of Goon des Garcons) create a beautifully emotional vibe while retaining a sense of club-worthy fun.
Originally released in 2017, it wonderful to see this album revisited and given the full vinyl treatment. It's never sounded better.
