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Talk Normal will release their sophomore LP Sunshine on October 23 via Joyful Noise Recordings. Pitchfork is running a video premiere of “Cover” from the forthcoming release. The track features Andrya Ambro on lead vocals and was written in the spring of 2011. Thinking a ‘cover’ song was needed for the album, Talk Normal made several attempts but none were right. Songs that made the shortlist to literally ‘cover’ – artists ranging from Buffy Sainte-Marie, The Amps, Janet Jackson and Tears For Fears – all somehow remain present at ‘Cover’s core. The video was directed by Celine Danhier and edited by Vanessa Roworth who are the makers of the documentary ‘Blank City,’ a film chronicling the gritty DIY music-meets-cinema scene of 70s downtown NYC, it’s only fitting Danhier and Roworth had their go at a Talk Normal video.Tour dates listed below.

After years of friendship, Sarah Register and Andrya Ambro’s Talk Normal first emerged on the NYC music scene in 2007, initially releasing demos, cassettes and their Secret Cog vinyl EP. Following the 2009 release of their debut album Sugarland on Rare Book Room Records (recorded and mixed by Nicolas Vernhes), Talk Normal released a handful of 7″s (including a split 7″ with Thurston Moore on Nathan Howdeshell from The Gossip’s Fast Weapons Records) and shared the stage with the likes of Sonic Youth, Wire, Yeah Yeah Yeahs and Zola Jesus.

In the three years since Sugarland, Talk Normal have refined their noisy vigor into the diverse batch of songs found on Sunshine. Tracks like “Bad Date”, “Cover”, and “Hurricane” carry almost a meditative emotional energy, where others like “Sunshine” and “Shot This Time” err on the side of explosive driving rock. Plus dance-y “XO”, narrative noisers “Lone General” and “Baby, Your Heart’s Too Big”, and standout vocal harmonies on “Hot Water Burns”. Produced by the band, Sunshine was recorded in 2011 by Christina Files at Vacation Island Studios in Brooklyn NY and Echo Canyon West in Hoboken NJ (Files also contributed to production). Allen Farmello mixed at The Snow Farm in Brooklyn NY.

Unlike traditional noisy-rock, Talk Normal’s Sunshine is steeped in melody, albeit unconventional melody. Sweet-sounding female vocals are present throughout, sometimes as sung lyrics and sometimes as instruments themselves. Ambro & Register’s combined voices often volley back and forth, each providing equal contributions to vocals, lyrics, and instrumentation – meticulously orchestrating not only the arrangements, but also the tonality of each collected sound. As Pitchfork describes: “(their) vocals can handle both desperate screech and matter-of-fact detachment somewhere between Karen O and Kim Gordon.” Combined with Register’s flowing, nearly-drony riffs and Ambro’s finely choreographed beats, the end result is a natural sonic cohesion. Maybe not the sunshine you’re used to, but rays within which you’ll want to bask.

Upcoming Shows:

10.05 – Washington, DC @ U Street Music Hall w/Jon Spencer Blues Explosion
10.19 – Brooklyn, NY @ Knitting Factory (Flowerbooking CMJ Showcase)
10.26 – Brooklyn, NY @ Secret Project Robot Album Release Show with Amen Dunes & The Flag
11.02 – Raleigh, NC @ Lincoln Theatre *
11.03 – Savannah, GA @ The Wormhole *
11.04 – Jacksonville, FL @ Jack Rabbit’s *
11.05 – Orlando, FL @ The Social *
11.06 – Miami, FL @ Bardot *
11.07 – Tampa, FL @ Crowbar *
11.08 – Mobile, AL @ Alabama Music Box *
11.09 – Baton Rouge, LA @ Spanish Moon *
11.10 – Houston, TX @ Rudyards *
11.11 – Austin, TX @ The Parish *
11.13 – Dallas, TX @ Prophet Bar *
11.14 – Norman, OK @ The Opolis *
11.15 – Memphis, TN @ Hi Tone Cafe *
11.16 – St. Louis, MO @ Off Broadway *
11.17 – Bloomington, IN @ Russian Recording *
11.18 – Chicago, IL @ Lincoln Hall *
11.19 – Cleveland, OH @ Beachland Ballroom *
11.20 – Brooklyn, NY @ Music Hall Of Williamsburg *

* with Future Islands