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Comfortably Swell

by Penelope Isles

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  • Cassette Store Day tape ltd to 50

1.
Bad Head 03:42
What can I do what can I change? Please give me something I can rearrange Eat some more fruit or behave strange Cut all her hair to show her real age Im trying to act my real self But I don't think its working I'm feeling different not my healthy face My eyes feel heavy I guess its boring I guess it boring With no bad guys I guess its boring Its alway yawning With no bad guys No bad guys I need something to maybe happen Something that will make me laugh Maybe if i take whats in your left hand behind your back The feeling that I had will carry on Its hard and its hard and you're hard not to think of when I'm walking forwards And I'm feeling different not my healthy face My nose is running
2.
Round 04:46
She walks so physically round me She talks so incredibly gently Flawlessly Round We go for crystal walks, fall in love Feel like a gentleman, soundly Around me Round Coming up closer Coming up just to see if you're ok, we're ok you have been round We talk in tongues sometimes, twist in time Swallow rhymes Round This, this, this is the fix Isn't it quick? Minds play tricks Round
3.
Apple Juice 03:05
I think I'm a better swimmer after only two weeks I think that all this apple juice tastes different over here Driving by, we see pools on sides, resting just before they move on home Watch the sky not a cloud in sight Yet they still all find the time to moan Yellow sun is sending everybody crazy Can we go and get a little bit of juice I'll wear the flowers through the sea Swim round the rock i'll follow you Calm me half way, one big breath No need to panic, follow me Orange sun is sending everybody crazy All I think they need is just a little juice
4.
Tea 03:54
Crouched upon your knees Here I sit without you, I freeze I'm starting to feel cold again Looking at the screen Makes both our cheeks wet, you scream How long has it been? Why am I not feeling better yet? Floating underwater Meeting all the grains on the black floor Sure, time will be shorter But that is something I would live for Pillows have dried up and out Cups of tea on the side that you forgot about Grab your buckets and spades Before the memory fades Please don't forget about Floating underwater Meeting all the grains on the black floor Shore time will be shorter But that is something I would live for But that is something I would live for They all love her, when she's fine inside
5.
Colourful shapes on your face I wonder where he got them He replied with his eyes A pause, comma, hi fen Get me out of here, sail away, let me skip a day She, she is gonna eat you Tell your sister Walk the wet floors Take your shoes off Find the money Give the money Find the money Lay me down beside you Drink my hands and float through Please don't let the sun go down On your rage Tell your sister Walk the wet floors Take your shoes off Find the money Give the money Find the money
6.
The Loop 03:27
Time it goes slowly Dripping from a tap, tap tap Pretend that every things okay Although I broke my back Then they go quickly Another one again, relay Im stuck on loop Im stuck on loop And then another again Feel love again Feel love again Don't be so sly And maybe don't be shy, behave The treasure lies under our eyes But I'm all for it Just need a little cool down inside The pressure finds and burns my mind I'm feeling heavy again Feel love again Feel love again
7.
Trust me I'm not all those things Don't say words that I can't understand Let's just lie down Dirty faces touch for sunrise Does this mean? My eyes are yours to keep for ever Cus they're mine I think they're mine I feel uncomfortably well Comfortably swell They're unsure I just can't tell I wanna know Your not being loud enough Just scream at me Oh I think my my smile's melted off Its on the floor I feel uncomfortably well Comfortably swell They're unsure I just can't tell I wanna know

about

Happy Cassette Store Day! We’ve decided to celebrate by giving one of our favourite EP’s of recent times a proper physical release, it is of course Comfortably Swell, the debut EP from Brighton brother and sister duo Penelope Isles.

Originally self released on their own Wavey Head label, Comfortably Swell is seven tracks of wonderfully varied melodic beach pop. I often find it quite a struggle to write about music that I love so dearly, but thankfully our pal Ross has already done a pretty great job of describing what makes this release so special.

Opening slowly with each listen, the way the group engage is in their apparent ease in writing such compelling melodies. Each chorus swells with emotional value; the gentle delivery of their vocals producing the most stirring effect. Lily sings with an innate ability to evoke child-like curiosity, ‘Apple Juice‘ full of wonderment in it’s loose and adventurous moments, ‘The Loop‘ dwells on love’s disorientating nature as guitars sweep and mingle in swelling distortion, while ‘Tea‘ dreams nostalgically of the coast, patters of synth topped with another heart-wrenching chord progression through it’s chorus.

It all builds around an empathetic belief in the reminiscent romance of growing up and it’s influence on what’s happening in the very present. ‘Bad Head‘s introduction is of wishful thinking and a proactive need for change; “I’m trying to act my real self / but I don’t think it’s working.”. A plea for difference and positivity opens the record to the colourful remembrance of youth, ‘Apple Juice‘s comfort and buoyancy in simplicity is the complete antithesis; “I think I’m the better swimmer / after only two weeks” Lily’s lyrics are convivial in their simplest form, yet are penned by an irrepressible melancholy, trying to hold onto the happiest of memories that allow at least a moment of escape, “grab your bucket and spade / before the memory fades“.
If it had been left to me I would’ve just gone for the much less eloquent description of “Comfortably Swell is the sound of your favourite Beach House and Deerhunter records spinning round inside a tumble dryer full of glitter and that one good Melody’s Echo Chamber album.

As anyone who arrived early at our Label Mates party in March or our 6th Birthday in August will attest, live, these songs take on a new form as they soar and swell. Despite their early billing both times, I think I can honestly say both times they have been my favourite band I’ve seen that day. We’re really excited for whatever they come up with next, but in the meantime we thought giving this amazing EP a bit more attention served as a nice stick in the ground.

credits

released October 8, 2016

All songs written, performed, recorded and produced by Penelope Isles, summer 2015.

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Art Is Hard Records UK

Small independent record label run by two friends, one of us works in an office and the other doesn't. The label was started by two friends influenced by the attitude and ethics of labels such as Factory, Wichita, Anticon and Dischord.

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