In all honesty we have been a bit hooked on the debut album released on the Thrill Me label from the New York based duo The Gloomies.
It all started with an innocent email asking us if we might be interested in pushing the sound of Andy and Chris on #itchysilk. After listening to DFIL and Palms from their debut Romance on a midnight listening session it was clear that we needed to get some time with them.
Listening to the stunning 9 track album Romance in its entirety is satisfying and fulfilling. It’s an album which delivers on many fronts. Engaging alternative indie and retro hypnotic sounds meld with ease while simplicity is the key in song-writing with many memorable hooks. The sum of these two forces creates an album that asks for your attention and then proceeds to hold it in a gorgeous soundscape.
With that we got some time with Andy to talk all things Gloomies.
“To put it simply, The Gloomies were created out of bits of dust … an infamous chthonian hellhole that should have been wiped of the map far before it reached the listeners ear.” Love the concept explain how you met in that chthonian hellhole?
A buddy of ours wrote that part of our bio, and he was referring to some of the dark places we lived in. Most of our music was created in the early hours of the morning trying to stay awake throughout the night, and sleep when the sun came up.
There’s something retro and hypnotic causing us to reach for some high-quality LSD. Break down where you position your sound and The Gloomies in this contemporary musical landscape.
I think everything you hear on the record is just a reflection of our different influences and the music we listen to outside of the band. Chris and I both like such a wide variety of different kinds of music. It is bound to show up somewhere, and I imagine that will continually morph over time.
Talk about your song writing process and the subjects you explore?
When the band first started, the writing process was just me messing around on my computer and editing songs for far too long. When the EP came out, we wanted it to be more collaborative by adding the live recording element. This opened the door to us collaborating with friends and other artists which has gotten us to where we are now. On Romance, we decided to work with our buddy John, who plays in John the Baptist, and he helped us produce and write on the record. I would say that most of the subject we explore in our music are like any kind of art. It’s an exploration of feeling, connection, and inevitably, the loss of either of those things.
And of course, break down the process of production, instrumentation?
The process of production is kind of push and pull. While Chris prefers more of an organic sound, I have been experiencing more with adding in a synth bass or more of a sampled sound. We try to keep things as minimal as possible.
Romance is your first debut album-looking at your musical trajectory it seemed the right time to drop your first debut.
I don’t know that there is ever a right time. We have tried to objectively learn from past mistakes in the music-creating process and felt that we were in a place where we felt ready to share with others.
Did you approach the album with trepidation?
I think we were very ready to release an LP, so it didn’t seem too daunting. The record was recorded quickly once we started. The writing and recording went smoothly, it was more everything after…all the red tape everywhere to release something.
In the spiel it talks of you approaching the album with a sultrier, darker approach-is that true and do you class your work as dark?
I would say that we are drawn towards the darker, more sultry songs coming out of the music world right now, but that’s not to say that we classify our work as dark. Our music has light and dark elements. One song might feel more pop and upbeat, whereas the next one might be moodier.
How much of your own life inspired this album?
Everything we write is influenced by our experiences/life. That’s the beauty of the process…you must become vulnerable.
Featured and second image by Nic Ewing.