Tapioca and the Flea started out as LA-based Samuel Jacob-Lopez Jr.'s bedroom project. In 2011, he recruited three close friends—drummer Matt McClanahan, guitarist Ronnie Watson and bassist/keyboardist Frank Alva—and honed a sophisticated electro-pop sound rooted in psych and indie rock that led to their success with dance tracks “Mellotron” and “Home”. Hits like those buoyed their rise in the LA scene, as they began opening for acts like CSS and Young the Giant. Today, they're premiering a brand new video for their single "Take It Slow", a catchy synthrock jam for the indie-kid romantic age produced by Crystal Castles' Ethan Kath. The video features a kitchen jam session as the backdrop for a stand-in couple's tumultuous relationship drama, with the requisite fighting-followed-by-making-out montage sequences.
The track appears as one of four on the Red Bull Sound Select Record Store Day Exclusive 7", part of Red Bulls Sound Select's artist development program that uses networking, event planning and state-of-the-art technology as part of its mentoring, collaboration and advocacy systems. Each month, Red Bull Sound Select hosts shows in vibrant music towns across the country including LA, Portland, Seattle, Chicago, Philly, NYC, and Austin, among others. The shows are curated by each town's local music influencers and feature a Red Bull Sound Select artist as well as a headlining act.
"Take It Slow" will be released as a free gift with purchase on Record Store Day (April 19) at all participating US retailers. The band are also set to play Los Angeles’s Amoeba Music that evening at 6 PM. The entire 4-track 7", including tracks by Thurz, Denitia + Sene, and Bagheera's, is streaming below.
