Painting in broad strokes of lush guitars, bright melodies, cinematic and intimate lyrics, and shimmering rhythms, the Virginia duo—Nathan Towles [vocals, guitar] and Cole Young [drums]—often pose and ponder a key question during the creative process… “What’s the location?” asks Nathan. “Songs always bring me to a very specific place. So, we try to put listeners in a physical space. Their ears inform where their imaginations go. Maybe you’re cruising on the freeway or walking around during the blue hour. There’s introspection, but it’s communal.”
Since 2016, Vacation Manor have carefully built this gateway. Their 2016 debut EP, Girl, Say, yielded fan favorites such as “A Toast and a Spirit” [9.9 million Spotify streams] and “Careless” [6.2 million Spotify streams]. On its heels, 2018’s Everything I Can’t Say Out Loud elevated their total streams past 25 million powered by “Say We’ll Make It” [1.5 million Spotify streams] and more. During 2019, they commenced their next chapter. Reteaming with Girl, Say producer Kyle Cummings, the musicians wrote and recorded their new EP, Thoughts In Progress, Pt. 1 [Nettwerk].
Their newest track is called, “Apt 4” and it definitely brings us to a location that reminds us of happiness. When asking Nathan about the song he says, ““I had just gotten married last year. The song is about wanting to be home. I don’t want to be okay with being gone all the time. Simultaneously, I don’t want to be so caught up in that feeling that I’m not enjoying where I’m at when I am away. It’s got a lot of tension.” This made us here at Alchemical Records, reminisce on some of the times when we were truly enjoying life, but yet had a feeling deep down of past experiences with loved ones or family members that we wanted to relive. Vacation Manor aren’t just amazing artists, they are creators of emotions, as we had a rollercoaster of emotions throughout listening to this song. Were incredibly excited to continue learning about Vacation Manor. Check out the video to the song below.
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Flow-bending artist aSanTIS discusses art, culture, and whether sound can solve the world’s problems in celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month.
My interview with Amy Santis aka aSanTIS began in the most unexpected way. The Maryland-based flow-bending artist and lyrical storyteller came prepared to engage in conversation around questions I had posed – and she also brought one or two of her own thoughtful prompts based on her curiosities around my view of learning.
This practice of taking in her surroundings deeply through observation and inquiry has come naturally to aSanTIS ever since she was a young child. In terms of her early starts in music, she notes that she began as a discerning listener. “Just listening to music from my mom, on the radio, just being a consumer in the world of sound. But I think mainly, my mom has always loved dancing and listening to music, so that was sort of like second nature. We play music at gatherings, we play music in the car, and these songs are sort of like diaries that take us into a specific place.”
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Alchemical Records is a Washington, D.C. based music publication. We cover the Washington, D.C., Baltimore and Richmond, VA metro area music scenes, including band interviews, articles about your favorite musicians, new music and concert dates.
