New Music: Laveda – Surprise

Back in March we featured bb by Laveda, the New York quartet founded by Jacob Brooks and Ali Genevich. The band makes a welcome return to the blog with the refreshing tones of Surprise.

Where bb would have held its own against the likes of Slowdive and My Bloody Valentine their prime, so would Surprise in its own way. It’s much lighter in mood, while still resonating with a shoegaze ambience.

The jangle and reverb of the guitar bring the melody to life, while the vocals exude a delightfully warm duality – hazy yet urgent. Surprise is one of those tracks you just want to let wash over you repeatedly.

Says vocalist Ali about Surprise, which will feature on their upcoming album, “Sonically, Surprise is the bright and happy song of the record. Lyrically it embodies a lot of my personal feelings that came after I graduated from college in the same year the pandemic hit. I couldn’t help but feel low for a while.”

She adds, “Once I came out of my writer’s block, everything I wrote either had this big sad mood or it was super nostalgic. The majority of tracking for the album was done while we stayed on a ranch in Altadena CA (which is about 30 min outside of Los Angeles). I think it was a very therapeutic process and helped us find some new meaning in a lot of the songs, it definitely did for Surprise.”

Laveda will release their new album in 2023. Surprise is out now, and can also be streamed on on Apple Music, Deezer, YouTube Music, and Spotify. Check out Laveda on their Facebook and Instagram accounts for info on live dates and the new album.