Music Industry News

Thomas Powers, co-founder of the award-winning synth-pop band The Naked And Famous, has today unveiled ‘Sleep and/or Rest’; the fourth single to be shared from his upcoming debut LP A TYRANT CRYING IN PRIVATE, set for release this year.

Ebbing and flowing from confessional indie to harp-sprinkled organic IDM, ‘Sleep and/or Rest’ has a soundscape akin to works from Jon Hopkins and Thom Yorke. Powers’ vocals are mellow and enigmatic; woven into textured music reflective of the lyrical matter.

“‘Sleep and/or Rest’ is about the restlessness of adulthood and the stark shift in perspective and priorities,” says Powers. “If growing up is a flurry of myopic concerns for the moment, being a grownup is about chasing that interminable yearning for a sense of completeness. Pursuit of the completed to-do list.”

“When we’re young, every day is a torrent of novel experiences. In contrast, much of adult life becomes predictable. Routine becomes essential. Years begin to blur together as time seems to speed up. The song isn’t necessarily taking a hard stance in favor of one epoch of life – it’s more of a stoic observation.”

“There’s a quote from the book “Four Thousand Weeks,” that summarizes the sentiment well; “We’re obsessed with our overfilled inboxes and lengthening to-do lists, haunted by the guilty feeling that we ought to be getting more done, or different things done.”

Written, produced and engineered by Thomas Powers, the track was then mixed along with Beatriz Artola. Joe LaPorta mastered the single, with the artwork created by Bradley Hale.

‘Sleep and/or Rest’ is the fourth single to be unveiled from Powers’ debut LP A TYRANT CRYING IN PRIVATE, following post-classical ‘Half Pourette’, the cinematic single ‘Falling Down The Stairs’ and the ethereal track ‘Li’, which featured fellow New Zealander Chelsea Jade. ‘Falling Down The Stairs’ reaching #10 on the Hot 20 NZ Singles, with ‘Li’ debuting to widespread local media support from the likes of RNZ, Newstalk ZB, Rolling Stone Magazine, Sniffers, and more.

Powers’ formative years in New Zealand are punctuated by the meteoric rise of The Naked & Famous; where in 2010, they burst from hometown heroes into international stardom with their double platinum, synth-soaked superhit ‘Young Blood’. In following years, The Naked & Famous would go on to release four more albums featuring critically acclaimed ‘Hearts Like Ours’ and ‘Higher’. Now finally stepping out from behind the curtain, Powers’ solo debut positions him centerstage, breathing life into an airless, electronic soundscape that cannot be ignored.

A TYRANT CRYING IN PRIVATE will arrive in the first half of this year, and feature celebrated artists such as Julien Baker, Chelsea Jade, Rob Moose, and Now Now. With Powers stepping even further into new sonic territories for the upcoming LP, there’s every reason to pay full attention to what’s to come from Thomas Powers.

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