Music Industry News

Aotearoa neo-soul collective Psycho Gab have today shared their jazzy new single ‘Pianomen’ – and it’s a wild ride!

A track full of twists and turns, ‘Pianomen’ instantly hooks listeners with its intriguing groove and acid-jazz vibe. Buckle up for an adrenaline-packed journey – with piano in the back, busy rhythm section riding shot-gun, tense jazzy harmony, driving vocals and a thrilling, chaotic end!

“We’re really proud of the arrangement and musicality of this song,” says lead vocalist Rosetta Stone. “It shows a sound from us that we haven’t yet shared.”

Made up of Rosetta Stone (vocals), Orlando Cooper (bass, production), Caleb Wong (keyboards, production), Max Henley (guitar) and Finn Mcneill (drums), ‘Pianomen’ began its life as a ‘joke song’ about Caleb discovering a free piano and roping Orlando in to help him pick it up, squeeze it into an elevator, lift it onto a trailer and lug it through the night back to their flat. As time went on, the band say that they started to like the driving feeling of the track and decided to run with that imagery. “It’s now ended up combining parts of the piano story with this thrilling love story of being on the run, like Bonnie and Clyde,” says Rosetta.

‘Pianomen’ was written, recorded and mixed across Psycho Gab’s old flat, Caleb and Orlando’s home studio – Bilbo’s Clubhouse, and The Lab Recording studio – where they recorded almost all of the second half of the song live. “It was a really fun opportunity to get a bit weird and experimental,” says Rosetta. “Olly Harmer was our sound engineer [at The Lab] and got this massive gong off the wall for me to hit!

“We also played a draft to our lecturer at the UoA School Of Music Godfrey DeGrut, who said, ‘if you’re gonna do chaos… you gotta really bring the chaos’ – so we recorded more and more layers in post – running vocals through Caleb’s little tape machine and through guitar pedals. It’s supposed to feel like the car crash at the end of the road, when being on the run loses its thrill and everything falls apart.”

To celebrate the release of ‘Pianomen’, and in anticipation of their upcoming debut EP CRAZY TALK (July 12, 2024) you can head along to an epic Psycho Gab single release show TONIGHT (May 23) at Auckland’s Whammy Backroom with support from Wellington’s Crumbly Jack.
You can find more info and tickets at Under the Radar here.

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Barely a year old, Psycho Gab have already received great local support from radio, industry and fans alike. ‘Pianomen’ comes hot off the heels of recently released single ‘Gabben’ (95bFM, Radio Active, RDU, Radio One, Radio Control, The Most FM, 13th Floor) and their 2023 debut ‘Messy’ (SRN, muzic.net). Their growing fanbase also come from the band’s year of electric live performances – including being semi-finalists at Dig The Gig Auckland, and finalists at Burgerfuel Battle of the Bands. Just getting started, Psycho Gab are definitely a band on the rise!

Photo credit: Gabriella Gillespie