Norwegian-British quintet Emma Eye Jedi has metamorphosed into all-Norwegian sextet Lovespeake and fortunately, the change is for the better. While EEJ was unquestionably a stellar band, their sound did not truly distinguish them from so many other 2010s indie rock bands; with Lovespeake however, the musical colors used on the canvass have produced a work of art that truly stands out from the crowd.
By contrasting white/grey/black tones with vivid primary colors, the excellent video accompanying the single "DNA" in fact crystallizes this remarkable rebirth from cool-but-slightly-generic band to one with a soundscape containing far more nuances; the clip was directed by Rebecca Wirkola Kjellmann and features dancer Mariama F. Kalley Slåttøy.
The debut ten-track full-length 'DNA' drops April 22 on Norwegian label Toothfairy. Three superb teaser songs have been released: the title track in January, "Tightrope" in February and "Dreamer" this week. (make sure to listen to all three on Soundcloud; see link below)
Songwriters Alexander Pavelich aka Pav (lead vocals, synth, guitar) and Andrew Murray aka Baya (lead guitar, backing vocals) have retained EEJ drummer Andreas Westhagen and added Elisabeth Nesset (percussion, samples, backing vocals), Martin Kaasa (bass, synth, backing vocals) as well as Christian Balvig (synth, backing vocals) for live performances.
Summer festival gigs and a fall tour are in the works; check their FB page for updates.
https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/dna/id1097383228
https://www.facebook.com/lovespeake
https://soundcloud.com/lovespeake
http://www.ferdinandfilm.no/#!rebecca-kjellmann/c3aa
