NORTH London alt-indie duo Blue Violet support Echobelly at The Crescent, York, tonight on their 16-date tour that also visits Leeds Brudenell Social Club on December 3 and Network 2, Sheffield, on December 4.
In the wake of releasing latest single Barefoot On The Seine, they will be showcasing their imminent new album, Faux Animaux, out on Me & My Records via High Head Recordings on January 24 2025.
Barefoot On The Seine – inspired by witnessing protests in Chicago and Europe – is a “schizophrenic dispatch from the edges of a Parisian riot: its verses lost in graceful Gallic romance; its choruses all grunge rock eruptions; its whole a righteous call to arms in support of essential personal freedoms”.
Singer Sarah McGrigor says: “It’s a protest song that promotes the message that love conquers all. It is about freedom; the freedom to make the world you want to live in a reality.
“The freedom to make choices about how you wish to live your life – who you are, who you want to be, what clothes you want to wear – and, most importantly, that no-one has the right to tell you otherwise. It’s a kickback at anyone who thinks it is their right to try and make anyone feel small or insignificant.”
Guitarist Sam Gotley adds: “We weren’t going to release this song as a single, but in the midst of so much political unrest this year when many feel so vulnerable, it felt like this song might speak to people and remind them that love and acceptance is always the way forward.”
In April, Blue Violet – Blue for their melancholic element; Violet for the vividness – shared lead single Boogie Shoes, a grainy glam stomp aimed midway between Queens Of The Stone Age and St Vincent.
This was followed by Imagine Me, where, amid dark 1980s’ electro-rock tones akin to a more seductive Depeche Mode, the song portrays a lustful temptress (be she a groupie, cougar, stalker or lovelorn loner) frustrated that the sexual encounter she so meticulously plots is over in a flash. The most recent single, Survival, is a gentle paean that channels Metric, Mazzy Star, Cigarettes After Sex and Julee Cruise.
On Faux Animaux, Blue Violet continue their exploration of rich electronic avenues inspired by Anna Calvi, St Vincent, Radiohead, David Bowie and Twin Peaks. Recorded in J&J Studios in Bristol with Bat For Lashes and Hannah Peel mixer and producer TJ Allen, the album promises “a unified and sophisticated update of modern British alt-pop, drifting from sizzling space disco to stunning, cinematic vistas”.
The duo’s songs spotlight not only failings of humankind but also those of its leaders. As Gotley says: “The fake animals could be seen as the powers that be, leading us down paths that result in us ignoring our more natural instincts, often making decisions without our permission.”
The track listing will be: Sweet Success; Imagine Me; Survival; Talking To You; The Librarian; Cold Hearts; Boogie Shoes; Fire; Teeth Out; Barefoot On The Seine and Faux Animaux.
Tonight’s York show has sold out, but to check availability for Leeds and Sheffield, head to https://www.songkick.com/artists/10169018-blue-violet.