Popstrangers Rats In The Palm Trees 7″

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About

There might be rats in the palm trees, but where are Popstrangers? Out on the water. The New Zealand trio recorded this new 7-inch in an old lightship moored on the River Thames in London, where the band moved in April. The recording and mixing with Rory Attwell (Warm Brains, Test Icicles) only took one weekend on the river and produced the roaring, restless “Rats In The Palm Trees” and its daydream memory B-side, “Fortuna.”

“I know it shines in you, but it burns me through, you’re the mirror telling lies,” sings Joel Flyger over the reverberating distortion of his guitar on “Rats In The Palm Trees.” Bassist Adam Page provides a propelling riff and drummer David Larson offers a rocking rhythm. The stays-in-your-head titular chorus is a literal metaphor, Flyger says. It’s about great things being soured by something nasty or undesirable.

“Fortuna” is a self-reflective song about personal change. It has a lazy, woozy feel as Flyger sings, “I miss the good in your eyes, it changes with all that you do.” But Popstrangers turn up the volume to ask, “If you could change, then would you?”

Artist Bio

Popstrangers is Joel Flyger, Adam Page and David Larson; three native New Zealanders, residing in London, England, who make distinctive off kilter pop music.

The band formed after the three members connected over their shared histories of bad day jobs, a mutual interest in 80’s New Zealand Punk bands and most importantly, a desire to create music with like-minded people. With a name conceived minutes before their first official show, their heavy yet accessible sound has developed to include songs indebted to ‘80s pop, a progression evident on the band’s latest album, Fortuna.

Popstrangers unleashed their early, noisy melodies on two well-received EPs and a full-length, Antipodes, their Carpark debut.

The band have converted listeners into followers at Big Day Out and Rhythm and Vines festivals with their dynamic live show. In addition to playing CMJ, Popstrangers have supported MGMT, Crocodiles, Dinosaur Jr & Wild Nothing on their NZ & Australian tours. The band also found themselves in a strange, and somewhat uncomfortable position; being nominated for the Critics Choice Award at the 2011 NZ Music Awards.

November 2013 saw the release of the Rats In The Palm Trees 7”, which can be seen as a—at least temporary—farewell wave to the hard-driving, punk-influenced, and sonically inimitable sound of Antipodes. On Fortuna, the band takes a step away from the noise. That ferocity isn’t lost though—it’s still felt in the power of the new songs.

Popstrangers’ London move hasn’t been easy, but through that hardship has come new ideas for songwriting. Fortuna is a document of the move and the themes include, love, loss, and the struggles of adapting to new ways.