Rise

Formats

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  HVNLP103CDCD  £8.00

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  HVNLP103Long Player  £10.00

Label

Heavenly

Cherry Ghost

Herd Runners

British European For the last couple of years Simon Aldred has been in a state of wilful musical schizophrenia Since 2007 Boltonborn Aldred has to all intents been Cherry Ghost a band known for perfecting a kind of widescreen North Western country soul Yet the third Cherry Ghost album 'Herd Runners' arrives after an extensive period in which Aldred's own music been pulled in multiple different directions Firstly as a songwriterforhire Aldred has helped nurture the best of nascent British talent including hugely tipped artists like Sam Smith and Kwabs Latterly he produced a set of critically lauded postmidnight electronic love songs under the Out Cold guise Somewhere in the middle there's the small matter of the phoenixlike rebirth of Aldred's Ivor Novello winning 2007 single People Help The People as it went on to chart highly in fourteen different countries in 2010 when it was covered by the teenage singer Birdy Far from muddying the musical waters each of these diversions has only helped sharpen Aldred's songwriting providing a major spur for the finest Cherry Ghost album to date Exploring different styles has helped my own songs says Aldred Musicians need to stretch themselves and keep on learning It was that exploration that has helped bring 'Herd Runners' to life Shifting from soaring symphonic pop 'Clear Skies Ever Closer' to melancholic lockin blues 'Drinking for Two' via an almost uncompromisingly hopeful rhythmic shuffle 'The World Could Turn In A Heartbeat' 'Herd Runners' is a sublime collection a reminder of Aldred's singular skill as a composer a skill that can twist bitter loss into teary optimism and back in less time than it takes to toss a coin Lyrically the album paints Edward Hopperesque observations of the lives of others Where previous records would have focused on the gloomy edges of the picture 'Herd Runners' takes something of a longer view These songs aren't as dark as those on previous records This time round I thought it was important to keep a real empathy for the people I'm writing about Recorded in Sheffield with longterm Richard Hawley collaborator Colin Elliot and mixed in Bath with Dan Austin 'Herd Runners' is ten perfectly crafted tales of heartbreak and hope That musical schizophrenia is clearly working wonders for Simon Aldred Long may it continueLP with Download

Tracklist

• 1 Clear Skies Ever Closer
  2 Don't Leave Me Here Alone
  3 Fragile Reign
  4 Sacramento
  5 The World Could Turn
  6 Drinking For Two
  7 Herd Runners
  8 My Lover Lies Under
  9 Love Will Follow You
  10 Joanne