CANTALOUPE - Error States
In March 2015, Cantaloupe released their debut album, Zoetrope. At that point Cantaloupe were a four-piece, mostly based in Nottingham. In the last three-and-a-half years, members have dispersed, reproduced, quit, been swallowed up by life/work/the world.
After a period of hiatus, confusion and exhaustion, earlier this year the band – now comprising Aaron Doyle (drums) and John Simson (synths) with support from a range of vocalists including Sophia Pettit (Night Flowers) and Beck Goldsmith (Flourishes) – deposited nine tracks of soaring, expressive, melancholic pop on the doorstep of Hello Thor Records. And everything made sense again.
Cantaloupe release new album Error States on limited edition vinyl and digital download through Hello Thor Records on FRIDAY 26 OCTOBER 2018. Thoughtful, inventive, infectious synth pop; overflowing with ideas; a bit battered by life, but ultimately still full of hope and love; and maybe even up for a shimmy on the dancefloor.
The lush, inventive electronic pop of Cantaloupe’s debut album Zoetrope received generous support from Huw Stephens (BBC Radio 1), Steve Lamacq, Tom Ravenscroft and Gideon Coe (BBC 6 Music) and John Kennedy (XFM). Louder Than War advised its readers “If you want some life-affirming, full throttle throbbing synth madness in your life too, you need to get on the Cantaloupe bus ASAP”. God Is In The TV Zine said the album “surfs the gamut of electro pop, krautrock and afro-pop, enlivening each one’s spirit with a modernity and a bold personality” and chose single Indigo as one of its tracks of 2015.
From the mournful rumbling of Error States’ opener Shut Down it’s clear, from the off, that album number two picks up on the more introspective moments of Zoetrope; the haunting Breathe and forthcoming single The Flood show a darker, more reflective edge, all delicate vocals and gently pulsing synths.
But Cantaloupe still can’t resist throwing in a kaleidoscopic pop banger or three. Forthcoming single I Thought You’d Know features a wild-eyed falsetto from James Finlay of Sleaford Mods favourites, Nottingham rockers Grey Hairs, weaving in and out with a hypnotic vocal from Angi Fletcher (of much loved Nottingham indie rock group Fists) and a whole host of bubbling, squealing synths. The whole thing brings to mind LCD Soundsystem at their most unhinged.
Lead single Change The Record (released 12 October) is a lush, effervescent slice of sunshine pop, featuring the vocal talents of acclaimed singer-songwriter Beck Goldsmith.
Alongside Goldsmith, Finlay and Fletcher, Error States also features guest vocalists Sophia Pettit of transatlantic indie-pop quintet Night Flowers, Matt Fleetwood (of indie rock band The Cusp) and previous collaborator/band member Eleanor Marsh. Error States was produced by Peter Fletcher at Black Bay Studio.
For fans of: Stereolab, Chvrches, The Human League, Kraftwerk, Patrick Cowley, Harmonia, Holy Fuck, Daft Punk, Feist, Giorgio Moroder, Battles, Quack Quack, Air, Lorde.