Picking up from what we are all forced to contend with and confront every day, is former Korean Gut headmaster, Jarrett K. with a sound as tough as the world around him. Life is tough, paying rent, room, board and beer is tough, so Jarrett ushers in the Tough Age, premiering the drowned and out, “Sea of White”. The Vancouver role model of Apollo Ghosts, Role Mach fame enlisted bassist Lauren Smith, guitarist Penny 'Agamemnon' Clark and Collapsing Opposites / Sightlines Chris Martell on the motor-steady percussion.
Combining decades of attitude, sweat, fury, and noise; their “fade in, fade out” minor chord clamor is brought out in full force by none other than our hero, Jay Arner, setting up shop at the production helm. The embodiment of the anxiety and the ecstasy fulfills everything you love about the grip, snarl and rip of the greatest stage destroyers ever. “Breathe in, breathe out, two lungs, can't shout, drown it out, drown it out, in a sea of white, drown it out, drown it out in a sea of white…” The fear and life loathing becomes ground and gets obliterated in primal sing-alongs and astral plain chord fire that maneuvers like a stomped up gear box hit by the pedals down into the asphalt's surface. The coasting crunch and guitar dirge creates a bursting reaction like the chemical chain effect of human responses where the impulse is to adapt and create something harder, louder and tougher than life itself.
In some last minute exchanges, Jarrett K. and I remotely exchanged signals and we ended up with this companion piece-manifesto on “Sea of White”.
Dear internet citizens:
Thank you for reading these words about this song we wrote. We're not entirely sure what it's about besides a half-remembered anxiety dream undertaken next to television static, the fear of isolation, the fear of drowning, and the thought that these two phobias are perhaps not as far apart as one may think. 'Sea of White' is a weirder number from our upcoming self-titled record, but we feel that's actually the most representative of our style– we don't care what music we make as long as it brings the words 'scuzz' and 'pop' to the forefront of your mind.
We recorded this song (and our whole LP!) with our friend, labelmate and cat-sitter Jay Arner, who is partly responsible for the feel and sound of Sea of White. Working with Jay was so easy and so fast you know you're either on to something great or something absolutely horrible, but since Jay is something of a genius we suppose it may be the former, and we hope a little rubbed off on us.
Our apologies if this write-up appears aloof, it is the exact opposite. It was written on our phone, hiding in the bathroom, during a shift at our day job. By 'our', of course, I mean 'my'. Hi. I'm Jarrett from Tough Age.
Thanks to Impose and thanks to YOU.
Back to the till now.
Tough Age's self-titled will be available November 12 from Mint Records.
