Leeds-based DIY project Carpet announces new E.P and releases new single ‘Soft and Hidden’ via Launchpad+
New E.P Fruit out November 1st via Launchpad+
“Well executed indie-rock” The Times
On November 1st, 2024, Carpet is set to release a new EP titled Fruit via Launchpad+. The project of Leeds-based musician Rob Slater—best known for his work as a musician and recording engineer at Greenmount Studios—Carpet marks Slater’s departure from his previous band, The Spills, and a return to the intimate, lo-fi recording methods that first inspired him as a teenager.
New single ‘Soft and Hidden’, is the sparsest and most introspective song on the EP. It was one of the first songs Slater wrote with the Carpet project in mind, capturing a moment of clarity and a vision of what Carpet would become. The song features a simple, looping three-chord pattern and quietly yearning vocals that wrestle with the prospect of having children, and surrendering to the beauty of a simple, happy life.
“In a way, for me, this is actually the first Carpet song,” Slater reflects. “I was playing a lot of Zelda at the time, so obviously thinking a lot about time, light, sanctuary. A friend and I were messaging about what I would hypothetically get as a first tattoo—a snail, under the arm, somewhere soft and hidden. Then I sat on the stoop in the sun, and this song came.” ‘Soft and Hidden’ encapsulates the essence of the Carpet project—an exploration of the personal, the intimate, and the beautifully mundane.
A linchpin of the West Yorkshire city’s DIY scene, Slater has played in numerous bands including Thank, Mi Mye, Post War Glamour Girls and Crake, with whom he raises a son. Through his work as a recording-engineer/producer, he has made and performed on countless records - recent credits including work on the debut albums by Yard Act and Holly Humberstone (playing drums on the song ‘Cocoon’) as well as with Leeds peers Jake Whiskin, Green Gardens, Thank, Crake, Mush, Beige Palace and Ellur to name but a few.
Crafted largely in solitude at Greenmount Studios, with some contributions from close friends, Fruit encapsulates the raw and exploratory spirit of home demos brought into a studio setting. Carpet represents Slater’s attempt to reconnect with the mystery and magic of his early recording experiences, blending the freedom of bedroom recording with the fuller sound of his studio work.
With Fruit, Rob Slater offers listeners a deeply personal and sonically adventurous EP that bridges the gap between lo-fi home recording and professional studio production. The release marks a significant chapter in Slater’s musical journey, blending his past influences with his current experiences as an artist and father.
