Picking up repeated Radio 1 Future Artist plays for their recent single ‘Always The Fool’ as well as rapturous fan reception for ‘Swim With The Tide’, Child of the Parish are on inspiring form ahead of the September 6th release of their debut album ‘Sweet Surrender’. And that continues with the record’s latest single ‘Local Bragging Rights’. Listen HERE.
The track pushes Child of the Parish’s hallucinatory electro-pop to maximalist new heights. Its sonic contrasts are immense, with luscious, dreamlike vocal harmonies trading places with a towering chorus underpinned by dubby bass bass and ambient synth textures. Bringing the early 2000s indie-electro scene to the modern day, its positive sound initially masks a darker heart with lyrics exploring the cruelty of those early, defining teenage relationships.
Ben Vella says, “There’s a darkside to the lyrics, but then the music itself is weirdly upbeat. So you have a serious, sad topic dressed up in a glittery outfit.”
‘Local Bragging Rights’, ‘Swim With The Tide’ and ‘Alway The Fool’ collectively position ‘Sweet Surrender’ as an album of complicated moods, its themes dominated by uncertainties and bittersweet mixed emotions. And yet it sounds like bliss alchemised: early 2000s influences like M83, Tame Impala and Daft Punk, a touch of ‘80s nostalgia and throwback disco all filtered through a future-facing psychedelic haze.
The unifying factor is their stellar songwriting, a skill Ben and Tom Vella have cultivated through a diverse selection of previous musical adventures. For their debut album, they’ve gone further into independent creativity by producing the set themselves, supported by mixing and mastering from Shuta Shinoda (Hot Chip, Spiritualised).
The brothers formed Child of the Parish after an inspiring Glastonbury weekend, their mission statement to be to channel their most uplifting and exuberant shared influences. While the music is rooted in the present day, their broader aesthetic is inspired by the folklore and dark history that permeates Ben’s home in a small scenic village in Hertfordshire.
Their first two EPs, ‘Make It Better’ and ‘Quiet Life’, established their space in the sonic landscape, attracting the support of Radio 1, 6 Music and BBC Introducing. As they began work on their debut album, they discovered that their creativity would be ignited by a free-spirited process. Rather than focusing on writing a hit, their writing became ever more fruitful when they allowed themselves the space to detour into whichever unexpected direction their muse took them. As a result, the album flows with the playful fluidity of a mixtape, yet maintains the cohesiveness of a duo who have fine-honed their sound.
‘Sweet Surrender’ is available to pre-order HERE.
