Philadelphia group Empath have shared new single ‘Passing Stranger’.
The crunching new track pivots around that rock solid beat, one the band term a kind of “druggy Velvet Underground” affair.
Slowing down the tempo, Empath dial up the melody, with the new vocal based on a long forgotten iPhone voice memo.
“The beat was inspired by druggy Velvet Underground drums, on top of which Randall began improvising a heavy tremolo on his synth. One of the slowest songs we’ve ever written without an abrasive moment. We finally got to do a fade out,” says Catherine Elicson. “This song was written in a similar way to ‘Diamond Eyelids’ i.e. collaging together memories. This time I pieced together different memories from my childhood, some idyllic, some difficult, but as if it were a story about someone else returning to their hometown.”
“The melody of this song was actually in a really old iPhone voice memo that I had made and forgot about. When I re-listened to it after a year or so, I was like damn this is catchy I gotta finish writing this one. I also wanted a song where I could bust out my sweep picking in a non-cringe way. I hope to be considered at the vanguard of sweep picking in pop music, thank you.”
Halle Ballard shot the fun visuals for ‘Passing Stranger’ – check it out below.
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Empath’s new album ‘Visitor’ will be released on February 11th.
Photo Credit: Marie Lin
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