MICE - Full Album Tracklist / Terry Moore On Process

It is with great pleasure that we announce the official tracklist (and reveal the back cover) for our forthcoming debut full-length LP Mice:

(artwork by David Palatsi)

"Duckling" features the take-no-prisoners drumming of Terry Moore (of Lily and the Parlour Tricks) and the ambient guitar magic of Massimo Sammi.

Terry had this to say about his playing on Mice:

"In the beginning, it was like Steven and I were standing in a room, holding tools and looking at a block of raw marble. All I could see was a hunk of stone, but fortunately, he was able to understand the finished product." 

(photo by Frank Hill)

"Getting to that point of completion was no easy feat; nearly every note played in every section of every song was deliberate, but only after examining (and exhausting) all possible approaches from a drumming standpoint. "What if we added [this]?" and"what if we combined [these two ideas]?" were all too frequent requests from Steven, but the fact that he could hear the part had to mean I could play it, had to.

Aside from the cerebral genesis of the parts, the physical execution proved to be equally challenging. But ultimately after many rehearsals and many (many) takes in the studio, we ended up with this wonderful music."

Hear an early dose of Terry's thunder on "Duckling" with your pre-order of Mice.

Yours in service,

*CHC*

"Calm Upon Storm" - First Listen

This is the very first taste of our new album Mice -- now available for pre-order. [soundcloud url="https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/168648416" params="auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&visual=true" width="100%" height="600" iframe="true" /]

Featuring:

Ashley Michael Bird - Vocals Robert Van Saders - Drums Gizem Gokoglu, Shanna Locklair McRae, Elijah Miller, David Palatsi - Additional Vocals

Recorded by Bob Mallory and S. Kaiser at Avatar (NYC), Lake Toxic (NC), and Sandbox Studios (BK)

Mixed by Bob Mallory at Tiny Quarters Mastered by Gerry Putnam at Cedarhouse Sound

Music by Gizem Gokoglu / Steven Kaiser Lyrics by Steven Kaiser

Thank you for listening. We can't wait to let you hear more. With love, *CHC*

"MICE" Album Cover Revealed

 

Beyond excited to finally reveal the cover of our new record Mice, designed by artist/musician David Palatsi.

David had this to say about his artwork for Mice:

"Steven and I were able to put together a cohesive package with some of my favorite photographs that -- to me --  sum up the depth of mood on Mice...at least the way I hear the songs matching the emotion of my photos.

It's a dark album, but not one without hope, romance, light, and emotional variation. Similarly my photos are usually dark, romantic, surreal, and emotional, music always going hand in hand with the images I envision in my mind. Mice is a journey -- a rarity these days -- and one that I am more than proud to have played a small part in."

Click the cover to pre-order. The first single drops on Sep. 24.

Hope you enjoyed the silence...

A quick Depeche Mode cover... new *original* single available 9/24. Sign up for our mailing list and stay tuned to chc.com for updates/exclusives. [youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MKfVPx7pu6Y]

[footage by David Palatsi]

Friend of the devil.

I spent last weekend in San Francisco with my father, getting a feel for the west coast, letting the breeze from the bay blow away some of the excess baggage. Aside from an hour or so each day spent in my hotel room reviewing mixes for MICE, I spent my time in Califor-ni-ay exploring the many corners of a remarkable city, all the while bonding with my pops. It was a much-needed realignment of context. Long talks with my father about his struggles and successes amidst the unmistakable streets and colorful houses of Haight-Ashbury, strolling through the beautiful remnants of hope from a failed experiment in everlasting peace, weighing my own musical debts to the Grateful Dead and Jefferson Airplane, aligning my perspective among the tall trees of Golden Gate Park.

     

You know, the usual hippie shit.

But it was a great trip and there is a part of me, too long a prisoner of the east coast, that is very much descended from my flowerchild father. Though my new record is only slightly reminiscent of the San Francisco sound, I feel that much of what I've attempted to communicate through these songs is at least partially married to the same vulnerable but optimistic nerve that Jerry Garcia and Grace Slick were trying to touch in their heyday.

We need to be better to one another. We need to love deeply. We are flawed but beautiful. Let's make the most of it. Love, peace, and hair grease.

-S