Acclaimed alt-folk quartet Darlingside announces the February 23rd release of their anticipated new album Extralife (More Doug Records/Thirty Tigers), and a March/April tour (See Dates Below). Extralife is the follow up to the band’s 2015 breakthrough, the highly praised Birds Say. Where Birds Say was steeped in childhood nostalgia and the loss of innocence, Extralife finds Darlingside looking to the future, mourning the loss of our world with an almost post-apocalyptic view. While the subject matter may seem bleak, Extralife is not without an underlying sense of hope and optimism.
Birds Say emphatically marked the arrival of an eclectic, intelligent and dynamic band. Darlingside stretched the boundaries of traditional folk, chamber pop, baroque, progressive and indie rock by melding the various styles together and creating something not easily categorized and very much their own. The media seemed to agree as the album received positive coverage ranging from American Songwriter, Paste and Rolling Stone Country to NPR, The New Yorker, and The Huffington Post, who called it, “...one of the great albums released this year.”
Extralife looks at hard truths ranging from societal issues, politics, environmental concerns and religious tensions as catalysts for where we may be headed. While the issues of today dominate every form of media and communication, Darlingside views it all from a different lens. The group looks past the now and predicts the life to which we could potentially be headed as a fictional narrative, but is it? How the group could address such a dark subject with such artistic beauty and grace is a testament to the distinctive nature of Darlingside.
Lyrically and musically, Darlingside continues to move forward. Their pensive and poetic lyrics are sung utilizing divine harmonies reminiscent of The Beach Boys, Fleet Foxes and Simon & Garfunkel. The sonic landscape they build with their seamless vocals and masterful musicianship creates an ambient, dreamlike atmosphere that urges total immersion. Darlingside’s sound is not merely a studio creation as anyone who has seen the band live can attest to. The merging of their four voices into a single microphone is something to experience to believe.
At the core of Extralife the deepest questions remain; does anything we do matter or make a difference? Are we resigned to fate or are we able to change the future? The members of Darlingside - Don Mitchell, Auyon Mukharji, Harris Paseltiner, and David Senft - believe that we can and we must.
Darlingside Tour Dates
January 30 - London, UK - Courtyard Theatre
March 8 - Los Angeles, CA - The Echo
March 10 - San Francisco, CA - Great American Music Hall
March 12 - Chico, CA - Sierra Nevada Brewing
March 14 - Sisters, OR - Sisters High School
March 15 - Portland, OR - Mississippi Studios
March 16 - Seattle, WA - Tractor Tavern
March17 - Denver, CO - Bluebird Theater
March 22 - Cambridge, MA - The Sinclair
March 23 - Portland, ME - Portland House of Music and Events
March 24 - Northampton, MA - Academy of Music Theatre
March 25 - Burlington, VT – Higher Ground
March 28 - Brooklyn, NY - Rough Trade (Two Shows)
March 30 - Philadelphia, PA - Union Transfer
March 31 - Washington, DC - Union Stage
April 16 - Nashville, TN - The Basement
April 17 - Ann Arbor, MI - The Ark
April 19 - Evanston, IL - SPACE
April 21 - Dale, TX - Old Settlers Music Festival
April 22 – Atlanta, GA – Terminal West
