Pale Blue Eyes announce second album 'This House' - 1st September
Pale Blue Eyes
Announce second album ‘This House’
Released 1st September 2023 on Full Time Hobby
Watch the video for Takes Me Over here
Pre-order here
"music that painlessly burrows deep into your cranium and refuses to leave..." The Line Of Best Fit
"enchanting... littered with moments of wit and invention" Clash
"Through reverb-drenched guitars and widescreen melodies, they recall the shoegaze greats..." DIY
"...impeccable dancefloor touch" The Quietus
"infectious" Record Collector
"New Order-esque thrust" Electronic Sound
"exhilarating" Uncut
"shades of New Order and Cure" Mojo
Delirious chatter… clinks of warm cans of beer… Cocteau Twins played at full blast. Lively memories of parties and people live on through This House, the new album from Pale Blue Eyes. The house in question is there on the front cover, the childhood home of the trio’s vocalist and guitarist, Matt Board. Defined by closure and moving on, This House is shaken to its rafters as the band navigate the grief of recent parental loss. Alongside uplifting melodies that dance like no-one’s watching, the album is rich in life-affirming human connections, where music-making becomes a means of recovery.
“When Mum died, five years after Dad, there was this charge hanging in the air, connecting each person in the room,” says Matt. “Time stopped. I felt like I momentarily entered an alternative dimension between life and death. Days and weeks later I’d see my family in every corner of the house – all the reminders, ghosts and memories. Then, gradually, it felt like time for a new start, moving on from the house and my amazing parents.”
New track ‘Takes Me Over’ typifies Pale Blue Eyes’ overarching message, ruminating how you can begin to overcome life’s greatest problems through creative output, as Matt explains:
“This taps into the feeling you get when life overwhelms you and you become consumed with what’s in front of you – and then seeing a bigger picture. It’s also about embracing, processing and letting go through music making and any artistic or creative process.”
Making music as a means to go on, Pale Blue Eyes’ two albums bookend other significant moments, such as soundtracking the Atmos arts-and-housing project in Totnes (featuring a sound-and-light installation by Brian Eno). There was also the time PBE’s beloved old Citroën blew up between gigs, reinforcing a valuable lesson. “You have to embrace the Berlingo!” says Lucy, rolling out the band’s new motto.
“Change is inevitable,” Matt adds. “You have to embrace it all, the good and bad, and the horribly ugly.”
PBE are touring & playing festivals throughout the summer, including Glastonbury:
Wednesday 17th May – Cardiff – Clwb Ifor Bach
Thursday 18th May – Tunbridge Wells – The Forum
Friday 19th May – Hebden Bridge – Trades Club
Saturday 20th May – Sheffield – Get It Together Festival
Saturday 27th May – Catton Hall Derbyshire – Bearded Theory Festival
Wednesday 31st May – Norwich – Norwich Arts Centre
Thursday 1st June – Birkenhead - Futureyard
Friday 2nd June – Crag Wood Cockermouth – Buttermere Bash
Friday 9th June – Kirtlington Park Oxfordshire – Kite Festival
Friday 23rd June – Pilton – Glastonbury Festival – Greenpeace Stage
Saturday 8th July – Bexhill – Seaview Festival
Saturday 29th July – Thirsk – Dear Shed Festival
Sunday 13th August – Newquay – Boardmasters Festival
& a handful of in-stores during week of release:
6th Sept – Resident, Brighton
7th Sept – Piccadilly, Manchester (4pm show)
7th Sept – Crash, Leeds (evening show)
8th Sept – Drift, Totnes (Outstore)
Tracklist
1. More
2. Simmering
3. Hang Out
4. Spaces
5. Heating’s On
6. Our History
7. A Million Times Over
8. Illuminated
9. Sister
10. Takes Me Over
11. Underwater
