Said The Whale hawaiii

SAID THE WHALE confirm their new studio album, hawaiii will be released on September 17, 2013. Intentionally using a lower-case ‘h’ and ending in a trifecta of ‘i’s’ the Vancouver-based quintet and 2011 JUNO Award winners for New Group Of The Year wanted to put some distance and distinction between the sun-filled U.S. State, so far from their Vancouver, BC home base.

The album title also mirrors the different way Said The Whale assembled this new album. Singer/songwriter Tyler Bancroft noted: “Instead of booking a solid block of time to record the entire album, we did it in short bursts over a period of six months. The time in between sessions allowed us to reflect on what we’d recorded, to tour and road-test some of the songs, and to continue writing.”

The signature sun-filled, hook-heavy vocal harmonies Said The Whale are known so well for, prevail over the album’s tracklisting, but alongside a notable sense of darker, serious subject matter and self-reflection. From the Ben Worcester lead vocals on album-closer “The Weight of the Season” to Bancroft’s heavy-hearted tribute to his mother and how he, as an adult, comes to grips with an aging parent, on “Helpless Son.” The up-tempo numbers abound with “Mother” and “On The Ropes” as well as the dreamy new sounds on tracks like “Resolutions.” The band, as any great band does, continues to evolve.

With hawaiii, the band return to long-time collaborator Tom Dobrzanski (The Zolas, We Are The City) with band member Tyler Bancroft stepping up into the role of co-producer. The record was mixed by Gus Van Go and Werner F (Stills, Rah Rah).

1. More Than This
2. Mother
3. Narrows
4. I Love You
5. Safe To Say
6. Resolutions
7. Willow
8. On The Ropes
9. I Could Smoke
10. Oh K, Okay
11. Helpless Son
12. The Weight of the Season