Sheffield four-piece, Laurel Canyons smooth out a sound of powerful fragility. Soaring vocals and instrumentals with a vulnerability and rawness.
The band have recently signed an exciting and well deserved record deal with Heist or Hit Records and will be releasing their début EP ‘Now We’re Rebuilding’ on November 17th.
This five track debut is one of very versatile creations; some heavier and bolder numbers alongside more timid, laid back structures.
The EP was recorded at Sheffield’s Yellow Arch Studios, where the band tried to capture the quality of their live performance. Adding to the rawness and honesty of their sound, the EP encapsulates mainly first takes.
Laurel Canyons have performed across the UK numerous times, both in intimate venues and on bigger festival stages, and are always highly commended for their presence and energy.
We spoke to the guys in Laurel Canyons about their signing with Heist Or Hit, and about the process behind this debut EP.
How does it feel for you guys having signed to Heist or Hit Records?
It’s pretty crazy actually. We were introduced to Mick Scholefield from the label earlier this year. We handed him a copy of the EP hoping he’d give it a listen, and five months later, we’re on the cusp of releasing it through Heist or Hit Records. We spent a lot of time and effort working on this record, so we’re really excited to be putting it out with a label that cares about it as much as we do.
Releasing your debut EP must be pretty exciting, what can people expect from it?
For us it’s kind of a new beginning, even though it’s our debut EP. We say goodbye to a lot on ‘Now We’re Rebuilding’, but it’s also a fresh start and we think that it shows. It’s a very personal record too. Jake (vocals) really opened up lyrically and we tried to let that openness carry through musically.
What has the writing process for this EP been like?
All the songs came naturally, but in quick succession. We started writing towards the end of January, and by mid-February we had the tracks pretty much ready to record. Jake would call and say he had a new idea; maybe a riff or just a few chords. We’d just play it over and over again in rehearsal and throw ideas around to flesh it out. The chords from the single ‘Owe Nothing’ were actually the intro to another song idea we had. We recorded ‘Now We’re Rebuilding’ with the same kind of sincerity as we wrote it, playing it live and using first takes. I guess you could say that the whole premise of the record is honesty.
Listen to ‘Owe Nothing’, which will feature on debut EP ‘Now We’re Rebuilding’:
[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/151832082″ params=”auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&visual=true” width=”100%” height=”450″ iframe=”true” /]