Friendship presents itself in many forms. Whereas it predominately provides emotional support and reassurance, at times it’s a result of circumstance spurred by despondency. Speaking of new track, ‘Alone Together’, Chris Mason of Low Culture says: “[It’s] about finding yourself in a friendship that is based on convenience more than any kind of care, concern, or mutual respect for one another.”
‘Alone Together’ slots into their forthcoming sophomore release (‘Places To Hide’) well; a record built around the dissatisfaction and alienation that encouraged Mason to relocate to the Pacific Northwest. “Those are actually pretty similar to the themes present on ‘Screens’,” he notes, referring back to Low Culture’s debut.
This move has impacted the band in more than just lyrical themes and inspiration. “Most of this record was written while we were scattered throughout the country,” Mason explains. “As a result, I did a lot of demoing on a drum machine and shared things with the band via e-mail. This was a totally different process than we are used to. Three of us are now living in Portland, while Joe is still in El Paso. So while we were super practiced as a three piece prior to recording. Joe came into town a day early and we spent it writing his guitar parts and practicing. It could have been a disaster, but I’m really happy with how things turned out. I think it’s our best batch of songs yet.”
Clocking in at just over a minute long, ‘Alone Together’ is as frantic as it is melodic, mirroring the geographical claustrophobia Mason discusses and his liberating move. With Low Culture boasting members of Marked Men and Shang-A-Lang, and production by Stan Wright at Portland’s Buzz Or Howl Studios, both ‘Alone Together’ and ‘Places To Hide’ celebrate a crisper sound than what has come before, yet one that carries the characteristic boundless energy.
‘Places To Hide’ will be available from the 9th September through Dirtnap Records. For more on the band head to Facebook.
Low Culture will be hitting the stateside road in early September, taking to California, Oregon and Washington. Dates below:
SEPTEMBER
03 SAN DIEGO, CA Awesome Fest
04 LOS ANGELES, CA Redwood
05 SAN FRANCISCO, CA Hemlock
06 OAKLAND, CA Sgraffito
08 PORTLAND, OR The Know
10 SEATTLE, WA Black Lodge
PHOTO BY: Paul Silver