Ohio band, Caamp, has announced that their fifth studio album “Copper Changes Color” will be released on Friday 6th of June. “Nothing stays the same forever,” says Caamp’s Taylor Meier, “and there’s something beautiful about that. Time passes, seasons turn, people grow. Change is what makes life special.” The suggestion is that this is the band’s most adventurous album to date, and is indeed, a reflection on growth and evolution, but also perhaps a celebration of the dreams and bonds that endure. The album was recorded in Texas, Oregon, and New York with co-production from Beatriz Artola (Fleet Foxes, Sharon Van Etten) and Tucker Martine (My Morning Jacket, R.E.M.). You can hear the first single from it ‘Fairview Feeling’ below.
On the title of the album Meier elaborates: “When we were putting the finishing touches on this record, I started noticing copper everywhere I went. The older it was, the more imperfect the finish had become, but that patina was what gave it character. That’s the way I feel about our band ten years in.” Founded by childhood friends Meier and Westfall in Athens, OH, Caamp garnered early acclaim on the strength of their self-titled 2016 debut, which generated hundreds of millions of streams across platforms and garnered the band their first gold single. Three years later, the group topped the US Billboard Heatseekers chart with their second album, “By and By“, and earned them festival slots everywhere from Outside Lands to Newport Folk. Their most recent album, 2022’s “Lavender Days”, featured on NPR’s list of the year’s best roots music, and saw the five-piece headlining their biggest shows yet.
“It’s so fun to just strike your guitar and let it echo through a large room,” says Westfall. “There’s something primal about it, and while we never really consciously discussed it, I think you can hear our sound growing to match the rooms we’re playing.”
There then followed a series of physical and mental health setbacks which forced the band off the road more than expected, opening the door for the kind of self-examination that can only happen while sitting still.“I’ve experienced so many different versions of myself these past few years,” Meier reflects. “I’ve been focusing on healing and recovery while still processing a lot of grief and loss, and it made me take stock of my head and my heart and my friends and my family and figure out what really matters.”
When it came time to record, the band headed first to El Paso’s famed Sonic Ranch Studio, where they tracked nearly 20 songs in just a week with Artola and drummer/longtime collaborator Josh Block (Leon Bridges, White Denim). After a break, the group headed to Portland’s Flora Recording to collaborate with Martine on another batch of tunes before finishing up with a final session at Manhattan’s Sear Sound. There are no plans to tour over here as yet but we’ll keep you posted should dates appear.
The album is available for preorder from this link.
“Copper Changes Color” Tracklist:
1. Millions
2. One True Way ft. Madi Diaz
3 . Brush
4. Porch swing
5. Fairview Feeling
6. Shade
7. Waiting Up (For You)
8. Mistakes
9. Ohio’s Ugly
10.Living & Dying & In Between
11. Drive
