WATCH AND SHARE “PETALS” HERE
SUGAR AT THE GATE DUE JUNE 2 VIA ARBUTUS RECORDS
PRE-ORDER SUGAR AT THE GATE HERE
PHOTO CREDIT : Chantal Africa // DOWNLOAD HIGH-RES
The new video from Montreal’s TOPS for “Petals” finds the band partying with Madonna, Michael Jackson, Prince, and a few other celebrity impersonators ubiquitous to LA. The video was captured at ‘Glamdale’, a mini-mansion and former brothel located in the Jewel City, Glendale, where the band recorded their latest album, Sugar At The Gate. Vocalist-songwriter Jane Penny tells Dazed, who premiered the video, “Something about the concept that was interesting to me is that, culturally, certain stars are brighter than everyone else. We were living near the Forest Lawn Memorial Park and Michael Jackson is buried in a mausoleum away from everybody. I had this fantasy of me and Michael riding around the cemetery, hanging out as friends, that I thought would be fun.”
WATCH AND SHARE “PETALS” HERE
LISTEN AND SHARE "PETALS" HERE
Due June 2 on Arbutus Records, the unassuming Sugar At The Gate unfolds slowly, taking time to reveal itself. Like nearly everything TOPS does, multiple meanings overlap with the album's title referring to orgasm, but also to carrot chasing, gatekeeping, and the social contract.
Penny, at this point one of the most distinctive vocalists of her generation, notes that "Living in LA was living out a teenage fantasy, living with your band and practicing in the garage. It was also the first time we've ever had that much space to make music. I took the experience of living LA as a challenge to make music that I know is real to me, in the sense of it feeling true and containing true feelings, but also recordings of great songs, the real thing."
Jane Penny and David Carriere (guitarist-songwriter) contributed to the album's lyrics as much separately as together. Both their perspectives are heartfelt, with Penny's sometimes cryptic lyrics betraying something of her unconscious.
Layers of sarcasm and sincerity seem to enfold the group like flower petals. Irrepressible jokers in conversation, their album's vinyl download codes come folded up inside drug baggies. TOPS' flawless musicianship and profound grasp of pop fundamentals are the surest sign that at the core, it's all as real as it sounds.
All of TOPS recordings have been produced by the band, who have self recorded the majority of their work to date. Riley Fleck's distinct and controlled drumming style is key to the arrangements on Sugar At The Gate. A sensitivity in his playing and strong sense of discretion is a distinguishing feature of TOPS' sound.
