Brisbane indie-rockers With Blue have been making their mark on the live music scene since forming in 2018. With their catchy melodies and sweet harmonies, the quartet have been rewarded with a solid following in the Brisbane music scene. We are stoked today to be premiering their debut EP, Pleasure Lies, ahead of its release on Friday.
The band features Jarryd Pollock on lead vocals, Tom Fitzgerald on guitar, Will Fenwick on bass and Kaleah Scanlon on drums. It’s easy to draw similarities with the great Go-Betweens who also hailed from Brisbane. These are tunes to put a spring in your step. From the delicate guitars and emotive harmonies of the final track, “We’re Still One” to the jangly guitars of “Blow My Mind”, these are beautifully crafted songs. This is a cracking debut from the quartet.
To celebrate the release of the EP, the band will be having a launch at Brisbane’s Black Bear Lodge on Thursday, 23rd September- tickets HERE.
The band has put together a track-by-track breakdown for the EP, so do press <Play> and have a read of their thoughts behind each of the songs on Pleasure Lies.
Pleasure Lights from With Blue – track by track
“Lately”
Fast-paced and driven, the song takes the form of three distinct parts rather than bouncing between verses and choruses. It went through many different versions, and with much of the writing being done remotely between the band during the initial stages of the pandemic in 2020 – it became quite a lengthy process. The song is about coping mechanisms and how we all tend to chase that next fix just to get by, even though we know it never quite satisfies.
“Blame”
Very sonically different from the first track, Blame is slower and moodier and captures a very different side of our ‘sound’. As many of our songs start, it was built around the acoustic guitar and layered from there. The track really emphasises our harmonies throughout the choruses and second verse, and we wanted the ending to build and build into a cinematic and full finish. While the lyrics are seemingly outward-looking, they are equally introspective, and are based on the need to point fingers in the midst of a break-up.
“Blow My Mind”
The title of the EP, Pleasure Lies, was taken from the lyrics of this track – which play on that grass is always greener feeling, our tendency to stay in relationships past their used by dates, and the lies we tell ourselves to justify it. The arrangement came to us quickly and the track acts as a solid bedrock for both the EP and our live shows. It leans more heavily into our pop influences, driven by punchy drums and jangly guitars. The chorus is a bright point on the EP – a catchy melody carried by sweet, lush harmonies.
“We’re Still One”
A short and sweet little love song, “We’re Still One” was a very late edition to this EP. We went into the studio expecting to record only the first three tracks, but managed to squeeze in time for a fourth – so there’s a few parts in there that were written in the studio on the day. Lyrically it is the most personal track on the EP, and talks about still feeling the love even when you’re separated by those closest to you – something that many of us felt when the world shut down last year.
You can follow With Blue on their Website, Facebook and Instagram
