Get your weekend started with brand new releases distributed by The Orchard, featuring Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs, Wyldest, and Smash Into Pieces.
Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs – When the Lights Go (Totally Enormous, LP)
It has been 10 years since Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs (Orlando Higginbottom) released his debut LP Trouble. He channeled his experiences over the past decade into his long-awaited second album When the Lights Go. This heartfelt 17-track album encompasses songwriting, ballads, and a pop-centred aesthetic that is full of depth, feeling, and storytelling. He has toured the globe, settled in LA for seven years, worked behind-the-scenes producing for a range of top-tier acts, and earned himself a Grammy nomination in 2020 for his collaboration with Bonobo – ‘Heartbreak’. The self-released album represents an end point, signifying closure with a renewed perspective after a period of growth. He touches on themes of love and relationships, as well as broader topics such as mental health, the patriarchal system and climate change. With new tracks available like “Be With You,” and over 1M monthly listeners on Spotify, fans will surely be engaged.
Wyldest – Feed the Flowers Nightmares (Hand In Hive)
In her newest venture, Wyldest (Zoe Mead), has become a solo act with her new album Feed the Flowers Nightmares. She describes it as “to literally ensure that you regularly ‘feed’ yourself physically/emotionally and spiritually.” After releasing her last album, the artist felt drained, and circumstances turned this album into a solo project where she felt she had to take on all responsibilities – writing, mixing, and, producing the entire thing herself. However, in the face of potential burn-out, Mead’s journey led her to Luciano Rossi (Idlewild, Dama Scout). Rossi, Mead, and friends celebrated in collaboration to create a collection of eleven songs that redefines the Wyldest sound into something altogether darker and more sophisticated. “It’s about the process of feeding that little creature inside yourself and also being able to push a reset button,” Mead explains.
Smash Into Pieces – Disconnect (Smash Into Pieces AB)
The Swedish cinematic rock group, Smash Into Pieces, also known as SMASH, have released their newest album Disconnect. Being part of the force surrounding the group since the beginning, their mystical leader and Superhero drummer ‘APOC’ first appeared in the booklet of the debut album Unbreakable, but came to life during the release of Rise and Shine. Recognized not only for their futuristic and apocalyptic image, but also for their creation of a cinematic mini series “Arcadia World,” playing out inside a parallel virtual reality. This combined with their arena ambitious choruses and mystical live performances is what embodies Smash Into Pieces. Surpassing half a billion combined streams & views, and being confirmed for more than 60 live shows in 2022 on 2 continents (supporting Starset on the ‘Horizons Tour’ in the United States and supporting Within Temptation and Evanescence on the ‘Worlds Collide Tour’ in Europe), this release continues to boost their momentum as a group. In their own words, Disconnect is “all about listening to the inner voice and disconnect from the noise we’ve been absorbed in. Exiting Arcadia has made us realize that far too many live their entire lives without ever truly seeking their destiny, and all too few of us are left questioning the playground we are living in. The time has come for us all to break free, seize power of the situation and become the vanguards of our own destiny! We’re ready to go to war, for peace of mind.. The question is, are you?”
