Son Step release new track

Philadelphia-based psychedelic dream pop outfit Son Step bring us the title track from their upcoming EP New Ears. A highly textured sonic meditation, the single “New Ears” is the first Son Step release made in collaboration with drummer and experimenter Ben Sloan (WHY?, Naytronix, The National). Recorded in various locations in Philadelphia and Cincinnati, and shaped against the backdrop of the sea change that was 2020, the EP is a stark departure from the band’s frenetic 2019 full-length, Fossililies. 

The result is a soft and moody foray into inner spaces, a collage of thick bass tones, synthetic cycles and fluidly snapping percussion. The EP’s three songs, each with a distinct sonic palette initially sketched out by a different band member, are connected through an emphasis on hooked melodies and unique textures that pop out with each listen. 

Lyrically, New Ears carefully explores themes of systemic failure, modern challenges, healing and growth, with words and sonics weaving into something meant to be felt rather than immediately understood. The collage-like atmosphere of the release is further aided by carefully crafted, bending synthesized tones from Jon Coyle and Joel Sephy Gleiser. The same goes for Sloan’s efforts, tracked in his own home studio and produced with an ear for nuance and percussive crunch. 

As a collection of new music, the new EP showcases a band trying to push every part of the creative process into intriguing, genre-defying territory. With the first taste of the new EP, the track “New Ears” delivers an intriguing kaleidoscopic sound full of shifting rhythmic composition to create a new colour of the group’s originality.

Listen to New Ears below

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