On "Flight of Ideas", Warm Digits make a call to arms: when we all think our ideas are right, what are the costs of never believing you could be wrong? Looking back to the history of psychology to find out what happens when ideas outlive their sell-by date, with their vocal guests they set up a blistering musical exchange between fluorescent agit-funk, primary-coloured synth-bounce and fizzing sheets of guitar noise. The LP features vocal contributions from Maximo Park’s Paul Smith, The Lovely Eggs, The Orielles, Rozi Plain and the Delgados’ Emma Pollock.
Infused with the restive spirit of Warm Digits and their guests, these inspirations are taken as a call to arms rather than an academic panel discussion. “Fools Tomorrow” uses the language of scientific revolutions and a spiral-eyed swirl of electro shoegaze to show how being able to accept you’re wrong can change your life, while “Replication” takes the ever-circling influence of Steve Reich and cult synth-composers like Laurie Spiegel to create a luminescent sparkling throb that’s impossible to resist. The Delgados’ Emma Pollock lends her vocals to "The View From Nowhere" which concerns two people working out their closeness and distance. It could be about any relationship, but the title is a reference to the way psychoanalysts historically kept themselves a "blank screen" with their patients, as if they could take a "view from nowhere" and be wholly objective in what they saw. “Feel the Panic” sees wigout psych-merchants The Lovely Eggs take advantage of Warm Digits’ relentless momentum to enthusiastically rail against pigeonholing and outmoded systems of authority with an unruly air-punching chorus. The song was inspired by the "being sane in insane places" experiment, which argued that the power wielded by psychiatrists' diagnoses was dangerously capricious, and that in some instances the treatment induced precisely the psychic distress they sought to classify.
"Shake The Wheels Off" is about the moment when those subjugated by archaic systems of control take their power back: in this instance, the way research on transport safety took the male body as the norm, drastically increasing the risk that women would get injured in a car crash. The Orielles' roll-call of female engineering heroes heralds the moment when the balance starts to be redressed. Meanwhile Rozi Plain gently turns insecurity on its head over a pulsating Eurobeat-meets-MBV backing to make “Everyone Nervous” almost feel like a valedictory slogan. Celebrate Your Uncertainty!
In an increasingly off-kilter world where reality shifts daily, truth is merely what we decide it to be, and an avalanche of possible identities overwhelms us with possibility, it can feel like our lives are careering towards chaos down a one-way street. The question is: do we “Feel The Panic” or “Shake The Wheels Off”? With its glorious defiance and heart-bursting grooves, “Flight of Ideas” calls to our past experience for answers, and dares us to listen.
Warm Digits are Andrew Hodson and Steve Jefferis from Newcastle-upon-Tyne, UK. Their previous album for Memphis Industries, "Wireless World", featured guest vocals from Field Music and Sarah Cracknell, amongst others, garnered plaudits from BBC 6Music including an "Album of the Day" slot and playlists for “End Times” “Growth of Raindrops”, and boosted them on to the festival bills of Bluedot, Green Man and Festival No.6 amongst others.
Infused with the restive spirit of Warm Digits and their guests, these inspirations are taken as a call to arms rather than an academic panel discussion. “Fools Tomorrow” uses the language of scientific revolutions and a spiral-eyed swirl of electro shoegaze to show how being able to accept you’re wrong can change your life, while “Replication” takes the ever-circling influence of Steve Reich and cult synth-composers like Laurie Spiegel to create a luminescent sparkling throb that’s impossible to resist. The Delgados’ Emma Pollock lends her vocals to "The View From Nowhere" which concerns two people working out their closeness and distance. It could be about any relationship, but the title is a reference to the way psychoanalysts historically kept themselves a "blank screen" with their patients, as if they could take a "view from nowhere" and be wholly objective in what they saw. “Feel the Panic” sees wigout psych-merchants The Lovely Eggs take advantage of Warm Digits’ relentless momentum to enthusiastically rail against pigeonholing and outmoded systems of authority with an unruly air-punching chorus. The song was inspired by the "being sane in insane places" experiment, which argued that the power wielded by psychiatrists' diagnoses was dangerously capricious, and that in some instances the treatment induced precisely the psychic distress they sought to classify.
"Shake The Wheels Off" is about the moment when those subjugated by archaic systems of control take their power back: in this instance, the way research on transport safety took the male body as the norm, drastically increasing the risk that women would get injured in a car crash. The Orielles' roll-call of female engineering heroes heralds the moment when the balance starts to be redressed. Meanwhile Rozi Plain gently turns insecurity on its head over a pulsating Eurobeat-meets-MBV backing to make “Everyone Nervous” almost feel like a valedictory slogan. Celebrate Your Uncertainty!
In an increasingly off-kilter world where reality shifts daily, truth is merely what we decide it to be, and an avalanche of possible identities overwhelms us with possibility, it can feel like our lives are careering towards chaos down a one-way street. The question is: do we “Feel The Panic” or “Shake The Wheels Off”? With its glorious defiance and heart-bursting grooves, “Flight of Ideas” calls to our past experience for answers, and dares us to listen.
Warm Digits are Andrew Hodson and Steve Jefferis from Newcastle-upon-Tyne, UK. Their previous album for Memphis Industries, "Wireless World", featured guest vocals from Field Music and Sarah Cracknell, amongst others, garnered plaudits from BBC 6Music including an "Album of the Day" slot and playlists for “End Times” “Growth of Raindrops”, and boosted them on to the festival bills of Bluedot, Green Man and Festival No.6 amongst others.
TRACK LISTING
1. Frames And Cages
2. Feel The Panic (feat. The Lovely Eggs)
3. The View From Nowhere (feat. Emma Pollock)
4. I'm OK, You're OK
5. Fools Tomorrow (feat. Paul Smith)
6. Replication
7. Shake The Wheels Off (feat. The Orielles)
8. Everyone Nervous (feat. Rozi Plain)
9. False Positive
10. Flight Of Ideas