Pitchfork

[Posted Tuesday, October 28th, 2003 04:00:00 Pitchfork Central Time]

Secret Machines have just mastered their full-length debut for Warner-affiliated Sire Records, according to guitarist Benjamin Curtis. "We have been working on it off and on since the Spring of '03," Curtis informed Pitchfork through the magic of Friendster. "A title hasn't been settled on as of today, but it definitely won't be self-titled. Life's too short for a 'self-titled debut'."

In regards to the sound of the new album, Curtis elaborated: "It's self-produced, mixed by Rich Costey and the Secret Machines, and is a huge improvement on the sound of [the group's debut EP] September 000. I haven't heard anything else like it, really, so I don't know what else to compare it to other than what we've been doing live in the past year. Our label has been more than supportive. They encouraged us to make a record we're happy with, and then left us do to it. What more could we want?" Curtis also provided us with a tentative tracklist, which reads as follows:

01 First Wave Intact
02 Sad And Lonely
03 The Leaves Are Gone
04 Nowhere Again
05 The Road Leads Where It's Lead
06 Pharoahs' Daughter
07 You Are Chains
08 Light's On
09 Now Here Is Nowhere

September 000 (released last year on Ace Fu) was a sparse and gently unravelling tapestry of experimental pop, making use of traditional instrumentation but eschewing the psych-pop genre's cliches and forging a bold new sound entirely their own. But although the short-player was an excellent achievement (and landed at #37 on our list of the Top 50 records of 2002) it was, more than anything else, a promise of even better things to come. The album is set for release in February, and you can catch the band live at a handful of upcoming dates in December:

12-04 Philadelphia, PA - The Khyber
12-05 Harrisburg, PA - Gullifty's Underground
12-06 Pittsburgh, PA - Mr. Small's Fun House & Theatre