13 October 2023 - 0 Comments

With their debut album, Signal Hill, The Mentalist Collective are expanding the lush sonic palette they showcased in their 2018 EP, Mandala. It's a wide-ranging, indie-folk-flavoured exploration of the quintuplet's songwriting abilities. Featuring the group's highly-acclaimed vocal harmonies, lyrical explorations both fictional and personal, and members that regularly swap instruments, Signal Hill is an album that reveals itself the more you listen.

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Originally devised pre-covid in 2019 as an EP aimed to feature the band’s rockier, higher energy music, the album Signal Hill is the result of more than 4 years of evolution. True to the nature of the band and the collaboration between its five composers, it includes twelve tracks of everything from beautiful ballads (Baby Girl, Fly Away), to indie rock (Realise With Me), to gypsy folk (Black & Red), through to hard rock (I’ll Make You A Star).

The title Signal Hill draws its significance from where the band records and rehearses in Dunedin, New Zealand. From the hill’s lookout you can see the majority of the city of Dunedin, as this album provides an overview of the diversity of The Mentalist Collective.

Composer/producer Brendan Christie says: “This album is the result of 4 years of hard work, having been recorded and mixed entirely independently and contains works that we are exceptionally proud of. We have been particular about supporting our local music industry as much as we can by having our work mastered and distributed only by New Zealand based options. It has been an exceptional learning experience for us and we are truly grateful for all the help from the community we have had in producing it.”

Life-affirming choruses, dark explorations of the soul, and the occasional wolf are to be found within the album. The Mentalist Collective's songs highlight the growth and change that has come for the members as they have matured; five friends who are thrilled to play each other's
songs.

To celebrate the release of their album, The Mentalist Collective will perform alongside Lara Rose and her band at the Port Chalmers Town Hall on October 21.

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