Following their 2018 EP Took A While, 2021 follow-up Stay Strong Play Long and their 2022 debut LP album There Is No Neil Frances, the collab-heavy It’s All a Bit Fuzzy–out today, October 6 (Nettwerk)–refines NEIL FRANCES’ natural, club-ready groove with sonic influences ranging from ‘80s/’90s rave culture, ‘70s funk and soul, yacht rock, and classic hip-hop. Alluding to a dizzy night out, followed by a pleasantly woozy morning after, It’s All a Bit Fuzzy is “an ode to house music.”
NEIL FRANCES’ It’s All a Bit Fuzzy is available now on Nettwerk here:
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To coincide with the album’s release, the Los Angeles indie-dance duo of Jordan Feller and Marc Gilfry is debuting a music video for “Energy,” a highlight track from the collection with Chicago house music darlings DRAMA (producer Na’el Shehade and vocalist/songwriter Via Rosa). “Funky, fun and carefree, ‘Energy’ is inspired by the rush of creating art with your friends,” shares DRAMA. “It’s about stamina on the dance floor, music that never stops and nights that last forever, but most importantly the ‘energy’ to keep up with the person you’re leaving with.”
Adds NEIL FRANCES’ Jordan Feller, “Working with DRAMA was like that Spiderman pointing at himself meme. Our process is very similar and there was an instant connection in the studio. Via tapped into the theme of not only the song but our album almost immediately. Via and Marc’s vocals together are pure magic, and it made producing the track with Na’el an absolute pleasure.”
View the video for “Energy” here:
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“The last album we wrote was very concept-driven,” says Feller. “This one, early on, we decided not to go through that again.” Letting the collaborative process guide them, NEIL FRANCES flexed their curatorial muscles and joined forces with rising talent such as DC-based R&B/dance artist dreamcastmoe on “She’s Just the Type of Girl,” alt-indie singer/producer/multi-instrumentalist St. Panther on “Let’s Break It Down” and “Head Straight,” and rapper/singer PawPaw Rod on “High” to create an adventurous, shape-shifting collection.
Elsewhere on the record, late-night groove anthem “Standing My Ground” enraptures listeners with bass, propulsive beats, smooth synth, and funky guitar licks, while “Gimme,” an upbeat, high-tempo house track primed to keep listeners dancing through the late night hours, is reminiscent of 80’s disco hits with NEIL FRANCES’’ own flare. The project started coming together in earnest when Gilfry and Feller discovered the colorful work of abstract artist Angela Bacher, who created the album and single(s) art. “We kind of reverse-engineered the name, and the meaning of It’s All a Bit Fuzzy after seeing Angela’s artwork,” Gilfry says. “We decided that was the right mood and tone for the album.”
Gilfry continues: “We wanted to evoke that feeling you have the day after a night out, which is just as important, fun, and rewarding – feeling fuzzy from that night. Just sinking into the couch and being with a loved one or friend. It’s a haziness and slight discomfort, but also a cute, cuddly day. Angela’s work captures that: It’s literally fuzzy and blurry but also warm and cute. There’s also this sinister thing happening with it — it’s got a bit of an edge. It mirrors the club experience, where you ride such a high that you have to suffer through a bit of a low.”
Weaving in and deconstructing classic house tracks into their live set, Neil Frances have written a genuine love letter to house music on It’s All a Bit Fuzzy, which is bound to get audiences moving all around the world. The live music experience is key to Neil Frances, who perform live as a band with Marc Gilfry on vocals and guitar, Jordan Feller on keys and CDJs alongside Rhythm Luna on drums and Greg Cham on bass. Underway now, NEIL FRANCES’ It’s All a Bit Fuzzy tour stops in major markets before concluding with a special hometown show at Los Angeles’ The Novo on November 4. From there, they will make an appearance at Dusk Music Festival on November 10 before heading south to Mexico City for Corona Capital Festival on November 18. A full run of dates is listed below.
Tracklist:
It’s All A Bit Fuzzy
Some Kind of Static
Energy (x DRAMA)
Gimme
Head Straight (feat. St. Panther)
She’s Just the Type Of Girl (x dreamcastmoe)
Standing My Ground
Let’s Break It Down (feat. St. Panther)
High (x PawPaw Rod)
Bye Bye Bye
NEIL FRANCES Fall Tour Dates:
10/6 Denver, CO – Summit
10/7 Santa Fe, NM – Meow Wolf
10/9 Ft. Worth, TX – Tannahill’s
10/10 Austin, TX – Scoot Inn
10/11 Houston, TX – White Oak Music Hall
10/13 Atlanta, GA – The Masquerade
10/14 Nashville, TN – Eastside Bowl
10/15 Carrboro, NC – Cat’s Cradle
10/17 Washington, DC – The Atlantis *Sold Out
10/18 Washington, DC – The Atlantis *Sold Out
10/19 Philadelphia, PA – Underground Arts
10/20 Brooklyn, NY – Brooklyn Steel
10/21 Boston, MA – Paradise Rock Club
10/22 Montreal, QC – Studio TD
10/24 Toronto, ON – Axis *Sold Out
10/25 Detroit, MI – El Club
10/27 Chicago, IL – Metro
10/28 Minneapolis, MN – Fine Line
10/31 Portland, OR – Wonder Ballroom
11/1 Seattle, WA – Neptune
11/3 San Francisco, CA – The Regency
11/4 Los Angeles, CA – The Novo
11/10 Tucson, AZ – Dusk Music Festival
11/18 Mexico City, MX – Corona Capital Festival
Source
Falcon Publicity
