Listen to the first single ‘Pictures’ from it below.
Catalan singer-songwriter Joana Serrat has announced the release new album ‘Hardcore From The Heart’, which lands on June 11th via Loose Music. Serrat’s fifth album is the follow-up to 2017’s acclaimed ‘Dripping Springs’ (“…sounds like an alliance of Mazzy Star and Slowdive – now imagine that, and it gets better” as we put it). For the recording, Serrat travelled from her home in Vic, a small city near Barcelona, to Redwood Studio in Denton, Texas, where she teamed up with engineer and producer Ted Young.
‘Hardcore From The Heart’ “starts with loss and ends with acceptance of the impossibility of achieving an ideal life, examining the imbalance that exists between the life lived and the ideal sought. Its title is borrowed from the book by sexologist and essayist Annie Sprinkles to reflect the nuanced, emotional and introspective journey that Serrat pursues in her lyrics and music.”
Lead single “Pictures talks about disillusion and the failure of communication,” comments Serrat. “It’s also a reminder of the amount of time we stupidly waste on trivial details. That idea of ‘perfection never comes’ is that you are better off just living your life because things can always go wrong. Tables turn in the blink of an eye. So putting off things while waiting for the right time to do them kills me. The song takes place in Montréal and it’s about a broken promise. It was inspired by the fact I didn’t let myself be angry with that disappointment. I built a wall and let my frustration and sadness grow in this space but never expressed it. That took a toll on me and by the time I realized it, it was too late.”
On ‘Hardcore From The Heart’, Joana is joined by some of the musicians she worked with on ‘Dripping Springs’ – including guitarist Joey McClellan (Midlake, BNQT, John Grant) and bassist Aaron McClellan (Josh T. Pearson, BNQT) – who are joined by drummer McKenzie Smith (St. Vincent, Sharon Van Etten, First Aid Kit) and keyboard-player Jesse Chandler (Mercury Rev). The work is rounded off by contributions of both pedal steel guitarist Eric Swanson (Nathaniel Rateliff, Israel Nash) and her brother Toni Serrat on drums. The magical varnish of mastering this flammable and fragile material is down to sound engineer Heba Kadry (Slowdive, Beach House, Future Islands).
Look out for a review nearer the time of its release here on AUK.
