Feature, News, Reviews

GIFT Announce Debut Album “Momentary Presence” out 14th October on Dedstrange & Share Lead Single “Gumball Garden”

August 8, 2022
Photo credit: Jena Cumbo

GIFT Announce Debut Album “Momentary Presence” out 14th October on Dedstrange

& Share Lead Single “Gumball Garden”

GIFT – the Brooklyn-based psych-rock quintet –announce their debut album, Momentary Presence, out October 14th on Dedstrange, and share the lead single/video for “Gumball Garden.”

GIFT splice together dank strains of psych, krautrock and dream pop to grow their own hybrid—one that according to Rolling Stone, is heady enough to “[open] a portal to another dimension.”

Dipped in syrupy synths and topped with powdered fuzz riffs, “Gumball Garden” is a delectable confection of heavy neo-psychedelic euphoria. Momentary Presence introduces bandleader TJ Freda as a sorcerous and versatile home-recording engineer, with “Gumball Garden” demonstrating his keen ability to get guitars and synths to melt all over a track.

One of the most infectious and raucous releases to be unveiled yet. This dazzling creation emits psych noodles and synth passages and above all this impressive, immersive energy. Dreamy lo-fi vocal notes and harmonies bring this colourful character to the intricate atmosphere, one which grows and amplifies throughout. The vocal notes soar above the ardent, jarring textures as the rolling drum shuffles captivate. The journey is one to be embraced, covering this vast ground and exploring delicate phrases and intense elevated bursts. Melodic rhythms and this addictive tone combine with the electrifying spirit of Gift.

I had a dream in late 2019 where I woke up one day and there was nobody on earth. I was walking around looking for any forms of life to no avail. It was sad but also strangely peaceful.” Freda says of “Gumball Garden”. “When the pandemic happened, this song took on a whole new meaning. We did wake up one day and the streets were empty. Everyone had gone away. This song is about finding peace in solitude.”

Momentary Presence contains recordings that seem to tease something seismic coming around the corner, as well as dense, layered productions that feel complete, definitive, and impermeable. Each moment has richness, complexity, and singularity. Once it’s gone, it can’t be recaptured. Can you be present? Can you open yourself up and appreciate it in its fullness – the ugliness and confusion as well as the beauty and joy? The members of GIFT believe you can. Momentary Presence is a chronicle of that chase, and a celebration of the eternal now.

Composed of Freda and his bandmates Jessica Gurewitz, Kallan Campbell, Justin Hrabovsky, and Cooper Naess, GIFT have a knack for conjuring soundscapes that are simultaneously turbulent and gorgeous. Together, they share the quest for perfect sound, harmony during times of trouble, and radical openness. 

GIFT’s debut is a natural match for Dedstrange, the new label co-founded by Oliver Ackermann of A Place to Bury Strangers and Death by Audio.  Momentary Presence is a meditation on working through the anxiety and self doubt that we all, at one point, carry. The arc-like trip from the shimmering album opener “When You Feel It Come Around” to the hypnotic closer “Here And Now (Time Floats By)” feels like a genuine journey – the sort of assured forty-minute trajectory that is only realized by musicians who appreciate the full-length as a work of art.

GIFT have crafted a live experience that extends the spell that Momentary Presence casts, and pushed the songs in wildly improvisatory directions. They’ve been selling out shows in Brooklyn for a while now. It’s only a matter of time before the rest of the world catches on. 

Momentary Presence Tracklist:
1. When You Feel It Come Around
2. Gumball Garden
3. Share The Present
4. Lost For You
5. Pez
6. Stuck In A Dream
7. Dune
8. Feather
9. Pinkhouse secret Rave
10. Here And Now (Time Floats By)

https://giftbandnyc.bandcamp.com/

You Might Also Like

No Comments

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.