US outfit The Persian Leaps back with welcome 5-track EP ‘Machines For Living’
3 min read
Based in Minneapolis, The Persian Leaps has released the ‘Machines for Living’ EP, a 5-track gem of a release, via Land Ski Records. that is bound to thrill fans of R.E.M. in their early less mainstream days, as well as Teenage Fanclub and Big Star. The Persian Leaps surrounds principal songwriter, vocalist and guitarist Drew Forsberg.
Here we have a fun and catchy mix of power pop and college rock of the kind that would have found a comfortable place in early 90s CMJ charts alongside The Replacements, The Breeders, Throwing Muses and The Violent Femmes, for instance. Not that The Persian Leaps found anything like such bands, but this music should appeal to folks with such taste and appreciation for the sound and spirit that permeated that era in rock music.
“The phrase ‘Machines for Living’ comes from the French architect Le Corbusier. He was a friend/contemporary of Walter Gropius (who started the Bauhaus movement in Germany) and once wrote “a house is a machine for living in,” which is even more true in this era of “smart homes”. The cover art that Jon Hunt designed is inspired by Bauhaus,” says Drew Forsberg.
Earlier The Persian Leaps released the singles ‘Alright Alright’ and ‘Maybe Time Will Let Me Forget’, the latter of which was written and performed by Jon Asher (Drew’s uncle) and folk/rock superstar Dan Fogelberg under the name The Coachmen. Having opened for bands like The Who and The Hollies, their only recorded output was a 45 released on Ledger Records in 1967 with this track as the A-side.
The latest in a fruitful string of releases, The Persian Leaps released their widely acclaimed ‘Drone Etiquette’ album in late 2021. Here again, they dish out a fine new collection of 90s college rock-inspired compositions, their distinct sound built on a magnetic alternative rock foundation.
From their 2013 debut ‘Praise Elephants’ EP, which NME Magazine described as “celestial guitar jangle”, the Leaps released an EP every autumn until 2017. From their acclaimed sophomore ‘Drive Drive Delay’ EP in 2014 to their fifth ‘Bicycle Face’ EP, they have delivered one perfect power pop cocktail after another. Their massive 2018 ‘Pop That Goes Crunch’ anthology was followed by a return as a studio project, releasing the ‘Electrical Living’ LP in 2019 and the ‘Smiling Lessons’ EP in 2020 together with Jon Hunt.
As of October 7, the ‘Machines For Living’ EP will be available across online platforms, including Apple Music, Spotify and Bandcamp.
TRACK LIST
1. Alright Alright
2. Maybe Time Will Let Me Forget
3. Lipreader Dyslexia
4. Beautiful Inside
5. The Nicest Way
CREDITS
Drew Forsberg – Vocals, guitars, keyboards, bass, drum programming
Recorded by August Ogren, The Terrarium
Mixed by Neil Weir, Blue Bell Knoll
Mastered by Bruce Templeton, Microphonic Mastering
Cover art by Jon Hunt
Maybe Time Will Let Me Forget written by Jon Frederick Asher (BMI)
Originally performed & recorded by The Coachmen [Ledger Records, 1967]
All Other Songs Land Ski Music (BMI)
(c) 2021 All Rights Reserved
Artist photos by Rouse Productions
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