02 December 2022 - 0 Comments

Welcomer is a 5-piece based in Wellington, New Zealand, centred around main songwriter Miles Sutton, who writes intricate, raw and beautiful pop songs. They are known for their poignant live shows which have seen them sell out Pōneke venues Pyramid Club and The Welsh Dragon in recent months. Today they are releasing their debut self-titled EP.

Listen Here

The weight of memory is a core theme throughout their EP. Recorded both at home and at The Stomach in Palmerston North, it features collaboration with several other Papaiti Records artists and has a strong lyrical focus. First single Cicadas 3 chewed over forgiveness and blame with a swooning duet chorus, "trying to light your effigy, rain pouring down", earning them the Student Radio Network #9 song of 2022.

The memory theme traces a path of unsteadiness in second single A Steely Dan Covers Band. The verses ebb and flow around seeing the titular Steely Dan covers band, "I think of you in the park watching Steely Dan, but it's not Steely Dan it's a Steely Dan covers band". The song then breaks open in the second half with a feature from Daniel McBride (Sheep Dog & Wolf) recorded in a warm haze while they had Covid.

Last single The Summit is a collage of sound and memory, set against an idiosyncratic Wellington, New Zealand backdrop of mouldy curtains and gorgeous views. It offers a lilting reflection on aging, mortality and impermanence: "hazy evening your mother pulls up at the summit, outside the house your grandfather grew up in". Two new tracks are being revealed with the EP; 6022/0, a contextual tapestry offering a song deconstructed, and Wedding DJ, ('I'm regretting each play, like a Wedding DJ'), a wavering ballad of endings and beginnings.

Welcomer is available now on streaming platforms and Bandcamp via Papaiti Records.

Comments

Return to News Archive