Torn Sail have just released a new EP on friend of the show label NuNorthernSoul and it is a banger. Featuring two original tracks from Torn Sail and 3 remixes, it’s essential listening. Phat Phil Cooper (founder of NuNorthernSoul) certainly has an ear for a great tune. Nothing shows this more than this Torn Sail release. And if this already has your interest, you can join Phat Phil every morning. Live every Monday through Friday 10am BST / 11am CET. Phil broadcasts live more bangers from his catalogue and beyond to get your mornings off to a chilled and relaxed start. We revisit this excellent EP from Nottingham musician Huw Costin (Torn Sail) next week.
This week is a Colombian Special as That Jamie runs up with 4 Cabezas‘ band member Daniel. We learn more about this eclectic, funky, raucous jam band from South America. Jamie manages to drill down into the detail. Despite being locked down on top of a mountain and having a highly unreliable internet connection. Daniel introduces the rest of the band and gives us a brief history lesson on 4 Cabezas. We’ve also got two tracks from them, including their latest release.
- Renacer 4 Cabezas
- Dromilly Avenue Dub Scientist
- Fire Waxahatchee
- Agitations Tropicale L’Impératrice
- Disconnected (Joey Fitzgerald Sunset Drums Mix) Torn Sail
- Sweet Porridge Radio
- Calles Latinas 4 Cabezas
TORN SAIL
‘A BEAUTIFUL LIFE / DISCONNECTED’ plus remixes from North of the Island and Joey Fitzgerald
Released 10th April 2020
NUNS021D
It’s been a while since the world last heard from Torn Sail, the soft-focus and sun-kissed musical project helmed by songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer Huw Costin. The Nottingham-based artist last popped his head above the parapet in 2017 with debut album This Short Sweet Life, a superb collection of timeless songs and instrumentals that built on the success of two stellar singles for Claremont 56, Birds and Treasure.
With his love of gently unfurling guitars, sunset-ready grooves, delicate arrangements and emotive vocals, Costin is a neat fit with NuNorthern Soul, a label long celebrated for its atmospheric and life-affirming approach to music.
What’s on the disc?
His first single for Phat Phil Cooper’s imprint is a sunny, slow burn treat, with Costin delivering two heartfelt songs. A Beautiful Life lives up to its name, with Costin passionately delivering poignant, thoughtful lyrics over a similarly heart-aching musical backing that makes the most of sustained synthesizer chords, hazy, finger-picked electric guitar notes and a gentle but rhythmic piano motif.
The track that follows, Disconnected, is equally ear catching. More folksy in tone and lyrically dexterous, the track’s part acoustic, part electronic construction is little less than stunning: a yearning, head-in-the-clouds treat that evokes buried memories of slow, sun-baked afternoons amidst Britain’s most idyllic rural locations.
The track’s future Balearic credentials are strengthened further by the accompanying remixes. Manchester veteran Neil Scott, the man behind El Diablo’s Social Club, dons the NOTI guise to deliver vocal and instrumental versions that tease the track further towards the dancefloor whilst retaining every ounce of beauty contained in Costin’s original version. The gorgeous guitars and chords remain, with Scott adding shuffling drums, warm bass and the kind of electronic flourishes that gurgle and babble like a mountain brook.
To complete the package, Cooper has turned to Bali-based Liverpudlian Joey Fitzgerald, a DJ/producer best known for playing regular sets and the now legendary beachside venue Potato Head. His Sunset Drums mix builds slowly and majestically, with Fitzgerald layering up delay-laden guitars, bass, vocal snippets and cosmic electronics before introducing a suitably heady drumbeat and more spaced-out electronic flourishes. By the time the rework plays out, you’ll be smiling, saucer-eyed and gagging to play it all over again. It’s a fittingly brilliant conclusion to another must-have Torn Sail release.
