We’ve been in this racket long enough to know that it’s not every day a band or artist attains the lofty ambition of releasing their first single on vinyl, not to mention it arriving in tandem with said artist’s first full EP. Washington, DC’s Jessica Louise Dye, or Lightfoot, is the exception to that rule.
Lightfoot’s 7″ single and EP, Scarlet Sails is available this week, and as such, DC’s Black Cat is hosting a release party this Friday night, January 27th. Joining Jess on the bill are Loose Lips, Ugly Purple Sweater, and Paperhaus—all of whom we’ve cornered this week for a chat about records in anticipation of Friday night’s event.
In addition, Lightfoot has given TVD a pair of tickets to Friday’s release party and a copy of the new 7″ to give away to one commenter to this post or the remaining ones throughout this week. Just let us know in the comments why you want to be in attendance Friday night – and why – and the most convincing of the commenters gets the single and two tickets.
If you missed our initial installments, we chatted with Loose Lips on Tuesday, Paperhaus yesterday, and today we’ve got a few words with Sam McCormally of Ugly Purple Sweater. (Jess joins us tomorrow, by the way.)
In 2010, founding Ugly Purple Sweater members Rachel Lord and Sam McCormally decided they wanted to make more of a racket, so they persuaded Mike Tasevoli, Rishi Chakrabarty, and Will McKindley-Ward to join the band. On their new album Conventions, the expanded line-up marries staples of the pop music form (fist-pumping beats, noisy guitars, and catchy hooks) with peculiar harmonies and oddball song structures.
This inclination to pull at musical loose yarn resembles the lyrical content of the album; the ways in which we rely on the conventions of romantic relationships, the moments those conventions fail us, and the realization that we’ve achieved genuine intimacy by simply playing the part.
Ugly Purple Sweater started as an acoustic duo playing house shows in Washington, DC. In 2009, they toured the west coast with Josh Stacy and released their first album, You are Alone but You are Not Alone, which features the DC-centric barn-burner “Jumbo Slice.”
Lead track “Roatan” from Conventions, takes its name from an island off the coast of Honduras where Sam McCormally had an accidental and anxiety-filled romantic encounter—and only barely escaped with his fidelity intact. (He’d like to say it’s about not cheating on your girlfriend when you’re in a foreign country.) Also, in a bizzare twist, the song was picked up by the editor of the Roatan New Times, who apparently has a Google alert for “Roatan” and was so excited at the local attention, he decided to run a piece about the song.
So, Sam?
What was the first vinyl record you ever listened to?
Raffi’s songbook, I’d have to guess.
Why is pressing your music to vinyl so important?
Vinyl seems to remind people that making music takes work, and, as of press time, people seem to still be willing to pay for things that take work.
What is on your record player right now?
“Black Music of South America.”
Do you buy modern band’s vinyl pressings?
I do! I bought Pree’s recent album on vinyl at a show recently.
Excited for Lightfoot’s 7″ ?
Am I ever!
—Sam McCormally
LIGHTFOOT Release Party, Friday, January 27 with LOOSE LIPS, UGLY PURPLE SWEATER, PAPERHAUS
$10 Mainstage / Doors at 9:00
Tickets here!
