Existential furloughs of the adventuresome and/or substance abuse varieties are relatively common practice among artists of the world; spawned out of a conscious effort to try and stave off things like uniformity, monotony, and existential sterility (to name but a few of the relentless truisms that occupy this bastardly, soul-devouring universe).
Case in point, we all remember when The Beatles went to Rishikesh in the late sixties, ate a bunch of hemp seeds with the Maharishi, and came back with what was essentially The White Album, right?
It happens to the best of ‘em.
For Patrick McDermott —the creative driving force behind ambient operation North Americans — inspiration came this past year while on a personal sojourn to the remote Sawtooth wilderness; one of the few remaining areas of the U.S. where you’re more likely to encounter a brown bear than a Starbucks. The trip procreated a variety of ambient soundscapes that would evolve into North Americans’ third full-length LP, which is due for release September 14 via Driftless Recordings.
The record, entitled Going Steady, is a 9-track aggregate of “meditative guitar stylings” set over a drone of unobtrusive synth ambience; a tangible deviation from Patrick’s previously robust, gain-heavy releases.
“This record was dreamed up in those moments where nothing else matters outside of what’s directly around you and the company you keep,” says McDermott. “For me this happens most often in nature, and while this isn’t some new, grand notion, I felt it was still a feeling worth exploring — especially in 2018.”
Going Steady employs the likes of Meg Duffy (Hand Habits, Kevin Morby) on guitar, with Julianna Barwick contributing subtle undertones to the delicate synth ambience. You can preorder the LP right over here, and in addition to the title track, be sure to check out brand new video for the freshly-released tune “Alice Lake” down below, which features Cloud Nothings’ Dylan Baldi on guitar.
Going Steady tracklisting:
01. Bleeding Heart Tetra
02. Stanley
03. Going Steady
04. Cutty
05. Sockeye
06. Grayling
07. Alice Lake
08. Tench
09. Northern Pike (Be Kind To Me)
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