Nick Thorburn and Mike Stroud are both indie veterans: Thorburn co-founded the band Islands after the breakup of his previous group the Unicorns, while Stroud is a member of the electronic rock duo Ratatat, who've mostly been on hiatus over the past decade. Now, the pair are linking up for a new project called the Creem, with their debut album A Taste Of Cherry arriving this June. Say hello to the lead single "Goodbye."
The origins of this collaboration go back 20 years: "I’d actually emailed the Ratatat account back in 2006, asking if Mike would be willing to play guitar on an Islands tour," Thorburn told Flood. "I had assumed Ratatat had broken up and was in need of an extra guitar. I was a fan of Ratatat from the beginning and even referenced the melody to their song ‘Cherry’ on the first Islands album."
Then, about five years ago, and Stroud reached out to Thorburn about collaborating, adn the pair eventually met up at Stroud's Catskills studio. "Goodbye," A Taste Of Cherry's opener, is a piece of laid-back pop that splits the difference between Thorburn's knack for melody and Stroud's immediately recognizable guitars. Check that out below, along with the title track and the album tracklist.
TRACKLIST:
01 "Goodbye"
02 "Goldmine"
03 "Hard To Pretend"
04 "Paraphernalia"
05 "Augur"
06 "Country Home"
07 "Taste Of Cherry"
08 "Never Hear The End Of It"
09 "Rushing"
10 "Circles"
A Taste Of Cherry is self-released on 6/5. Pre-order it here.
