Earlier this week, I wrote about the up-and-coming Brighton, UK-based indie rock quartet Penelope Isles, and as you may recall, the act which is comprised of Devon, UK-born, Isle of Man-raised sibling songwriting duo Jack Wolter and Lily Wolter, along with Jack Sowton and Becky Redford is centered by the bond between Wolters, a bond that ironically was strengthened when Jack, who’s six years older moved out of the family home to study art when he was 19. “By the time I moved home, Lil was not so much of an annoying younger sister anymore and had grown up and started playing in bands and writing songs. We soon become very close. I had written some songs, so we started a band called Your Gold Teeth. We toured a bit and then Lily left for Brighton to study songwriting.”
While Lily Wolter studied in Brighton, she met Jack Sowton and Becky Redford, with whom she formed a band. As the story goes, when Lily Wolter returned home for the holidays, the idea of a forming a new band rapidly developed. Though Jack and Lily have long written separately, they chucked their disparate songs into a shared song pot, their new band was fueled by a passion for DIY alt rock/indie rock — and are influenced by the likes of Deerhunter, Pixies, Tame Impala, Radiohead and The Thrills among others.
The up-and-coming Brighton-based indie rock act recently signed to renowned indie label Bella Union Records, who will be releasing the British act’s full-length debut Until the Tide Creeps In. Slated for a July 12, 2019 release, Penelope Isles’ debut thematically is informed by the Wolters’ shared experience — in particular leaving home, moving away, dealing with the various transitions in life and growing up. “We are six years apart, so we had a different experience of some of this, but we share a similar inspiration when writing writing music. Family, leaving home, disconnection and connection all ring bells!”
“Chlorine,” Until the Tide Creeps In’s Sleepy Sun-like album opener was centered around an arrangement that subtly bridges shimmering dream pop, shoegaze and fuzz pop — and while buoyant and seemingly ethereal, the song possessed a bracing quality, much like stepping into a cold shower. Interestingly, the song has an underlying emotional push and pull; the sort of complexity brought about by obligation and duty and the need to go out on your own. The forthcoming album’s latest single is the woozy “Round,” a track that sonically seems to mesh 70s AM rock with shoegaze as the track is centered by a looping and shimmering guitar line and a soaring hook. And much like its predecessor, the new single will further establish the band’s bracingly wistful take on a familiar and beloved sound — all while evoking the ebb and flow of complicated and ambivalent emotions.
The band is currently on an UK and EU tour. Check out the tour dates below.
UK/EU Tour Dates:
05/04/19 – Liverpool, UK @ Liverpool Sound City
05/05/19 – Manchester, UK @ Sounds From The Other City
05/07/19 – Paris, FR @ Le Supersonic
05/09/19 – Brighton, UK @ The Great Escape
05/10/19 – Brighton, UK @ The Alternative Escape
05/11/19 – Brighton, UK @ The Great Escape
05/16/19 – Wrexham, UK @ FOCUS Wales
05/24/19 – Amsterdam, NL @ London Calling
05/25/19 – Laval, FR @ Les 3 Elephants
06/15/19 – Maastricht, NL @ Transformer Festival
06/25/19 – Kiel, DE @ FahrradKinoKombinat
06/26/19 – Berlin, DE @ Urban Spree
06/29/19 – Kassel, DE @ Schlachthof Biergarten
06/30/19 – Offenbach, DE @ Hafen 20
7/06/19 – Six Fours Les Plages, FR @ Festival Pointu
07/13/19 – Trenčín, SK @ Pohoda Festival
07/26/19 – Topcliffe, UK @ Deer Shed Festival
08/11/19 – Cornwall, UK @ Boardmasters
08/16/19 – Breacon Beacons, UK @ Green Man Festival
08/17/19 – Hasselt, BE @ Pukkelpop
09/22/19 – Rotterdam, NL @ V11
09/24/19 – Frankfurt, DE @ The Cave
09/25/19 – Dresden, DE @ Ostpol
09/26/19 – Leipzig, DE @ Nochbesserleben
09/29/19 – Karlsruhe, DE @ P8
11/09/19 – Reykjavik, IS @ Iceland Airwaves
11/25/19 – Guildford, UK @ The Boileroom
11/26/19 – Cambridge, UK @ Portland Arms
11/27/19 – Oxford, UK @ The Jericho Tavern
11/29/19 – Dublin, IRE @ Whelan’s
12/01/19 – Newcastle, UK @ Cluny 2
12/02/19 – Glasgow, UK @ Hug & Pint
12/03/19 – York, UK @ The Fulford Arms
12/04/19 – Leicester, UK @ The Cookie
12/06/19 – Bristol, UK @ Rough Trade Bristol
