TOPS drop single off forthcoming release

Tops release single "Further" of forthcoming release 'Sugar at the Gate'
PHOTO CREDIT : Richmond Lam

In advance of their new album Sugar At The Gate, Montreal’s TOPS are back to share “Further”. “‘Further’ lays between the realization that you’ve restrained your true feelings and allowing yourself the freedom to want more,” explain Jane and David from the band. “It’s an emotional song, but I hope ultimately it’s uplifting.”

For the recording of Sugar At The Gate TOPS headed out to Los Angeles. They lived and recorded at “Glamdale,” a mini-mansion and former brothel located in the Jewel City, Glendale, CA. The unassuming record 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.

Vocalist-songwriter Jane Penny, at this point one of the most distinctive vocalists of her generation, took time during the recording learning how to drive in the Forest Lawn Cemetery parking lot. “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.

TOPPS
EUROPEAN TOUR DATES

6/2 – Bristol, GB @ Southbank Club
6/4 – Manchester, GB @ The Ritz
6/5 – Brighton, GB @ The Joker
6/6 – London, GB @ The Dome
6/7 – Paris, FR @ Point Ephemere
6/8 – Amsterdam, NL @ De School
6/9 – Hamburg, DE @ Uebel & Gefaehrlich
6/10 – Berlin, DE @ Roter Salon
6/11 – Warsaw, PL @ Cafe Kulturalna
6/12 – Krakow, PL @ Klub RE

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