aaamusic | On 10, Jan 2011

CULTS

Release debut UK single “Go Outside”

Single released in February on limited edition 7” vinyl and digital download through In The Name Of/ Columbia

“Invigorating…(Go Outside) recalls both…glockenspiel-happy Swedish pop and the simple, nostalgia-inducing melody of the Faces’ classic “Ooh La La” – Pitchfork

“(Cults) are forging a wholesome but haunting new lo-fi pop territory” – NME

“A faultless realisation of…C86-meets-60s-pop” – Guardian

The rapidly ascendant New York duo Cults might have made quite the splash in 2010, but in actual fact, they’ve merely been laying the groundwork for what is sure to be a massive year ahead, including the release of their debut album in May.

When Brian Oblivion and Madeline Follin first posted 3 songs anonymously on a Bandcamp account last spring, without so much as a Facebook or Twitter account to their name, they couldn’t possibly have suspected what would happen next. The influential likes of Pitchfork, Gorilla Vs Bear and NME immediately rallied together to show their critical support, and in the US they released a quickly sold out single on Forest Family Records, and followed it up with a slew of live supports with the likes of Best Coast. Finally, to cap off their incredible year, they signed a worldwide deal with In The Name Of/ Columbia, with a debut album currently being prepped for release in May with Shane Stoneback (Sleigh Bells, Vampire Weekend).

How fitting then, that Cults begin this next phase of their career with the first proper UK release of the song that originally kicked off all the fuss – the dreamily off-kilter, twinkling bliss-pop of “Go Outside”. Even now, the considerable beauty of this track remains undimmed, as it travels from the strange (witness the opening sample of Jonestown head honcho Jim Jones declaring “Death is not a fearful thing…it’s living that’s treacherous”) to the sublime (as they deploy gorgeous 60’s Lesley Gore-inspired melodies augmented with glockenspiels) and back again. It may absorb the harmonies of Phil Spector, the hip hop loops of Jay Z, or the fuzzed out feedback of My Bloody Valentine, but it is, at the end of the day, undoubtedly its own animal.

In addition, after well-received shows at the likes of CMJ and Fun Fun Fun Festival last autumn, the band are finally heading over for some much anticipated debut UK shows in February, playing a clutch of hotly anticipated gigs, including a special NME Awards show at Bush Hall with the similarly white hot Yuck. It is certain to be the start of what looks set to be a charmed year for Cults indeed.

Digital release – February 20

1.     Go Outside

2.     Go Outside (Two Bears remix)

Limited edition white vinyl 7” single – February 21

1.     Go Outside

2.     Go Outside (Two Bears remix)

UPCOMING LIVE DATES

Feb

18 – Bush Hall, London w/ Yuck and Guards

22 – White Heat @ Madame JoJo’s, London

25 – Rockfeedback @ The Lexington, London