Chicago indie pop-rock outfit Push Puppets presents their new dynamic and multifaceted album ‘Tethered Together’, their fourth to date, released via Flowering Tree Music.
The creative outlet for singer-songwriter and guitarist Erich Specht, Push Puppets creates songs with earworm melodies and shiny production that belie often-bittersweet sentiments. Specht (lead vocals, guitar) is joined by a core of Steve Frisbie (backup vocals, guitar), Kyle Magnusson (keyboards), John William Lauler (bass) and Greg Essig (drums). Most of the songs on this album also involve a string quartet, with a horn section on one.
“This album offers a nod to the artistic excesses of the 70s, whether it’s a wall of phased vocals or a moment where guitars and strings rip a quick line together between phrases. The tracks are widely varied yet cohesive – and within a given song, you’re likely to be taken elsewhere,” says Erich Specht.
‘Tethered Together’ was produced by Doug McBride (Smashing Pumpkins, Veruca Salt, Silversun Pickups, Cheap Trick) and Erich Specht, this album being mixed and mastered by Doug McBride at Gravity Studios in Chicago.
Push Puppets also introduce a new video for ‘Hearts Aren’t Souvenirs’, a genre-bending tune about holding on to a relationship too long. Stylistically it’s hard to place, having traits of Americana with a funky Memphis-style bass line in an absolute earworm of a chorus and a rocking bridge that takes it somewhere else entirely. Whatever it is, it’s done with authority as songwriter Erich Specht explores many angles that serve the subject matter.
Depicting human hearts from past relationships being added to a collection, this video was edited and animated by Metamorse Studio and produced by Scott Thiele and Sebastian Gonzales. This team also realized the videos for ‘Similar’ and ‘All Together On 3’ with the band joined by a string quartet, comprised of Stephanie “Sly” Young on violin, Katherine Andrick on viola, Molly Rife on cello and Kelly Jozwiak on violin (note: Janis Sakai performs in the audio recording).
This record is graced with impeccable songwriting that shines with lush harmonies, angular guitars, dramatic keyboards and strings backed by a smoking rhythm section. Erich Specht muses on relationships and loss, as well as the weight and joy of life, in a manner that is poetic and seems effortless, his lyrics fitting to the melody like pieces of a puzzle. Wearing his vulnerabilities like a badge of honor, this music takes us on a journey to unexpected places.
Erich Specht shares, “Our music is not about a genre or a particular fashionable sound. We’re slaves to the song and try to allow it to reach its potential with no regard for how it fits the style of the time. While we certainly build upon our influences, we are happiest exporing new territory. think when you set out to make a song complicated, it can sound contrived. I love it when I chase a part I’m imagining that happens gracefully, and then I discover that there’s something weird about it.”
Kicking off with the arena-rocking anthem ‘Similar’, which explores universal connections, and ‘Hearts Aren’t Souvenirs’, ‘Probably’ offers a poignant tribute with a dramatic string-laden conclusion. The superb ‘All Together On 3’ builds progressively to a cathartic blend of live strings and desperate vocals, highlighting the strength found in unity.
The album continues its sonic journey with the dramatic and evolving ‘Launching a Satellite’, culminating in a striking interplay between strings and electric guitar. ‘This Whole Endeavor’ hooks the listener with a memorable piano riff while recounting the ebb and flow of a past relationship. A lighthearted interlude arrives with the retro rocker ‘Tell Colleen to Calm Down’, followed by the Spanish-tinged inhibition-shedding ‘Shake It Like You Mean It’. The album delves into the pain of lost love in the Americana-influenced ‘Hearts Are Fragile’ before reaching a powerful and dramatic conclusion with ‘The Logical Conclusion’, driven by intense strings and piano.
On May 16, the ‘Tethered Together’ album is available on CD, digitally on fine digital platforms, and can be obtained in either format directly from the artist via Bandcamp. Push Puppets’ album release show will take place at Robert’s Westside in Forest Park, IL on May 30.
TRACK LIST
01 Similar (3:37)
02 Hearts Aren’t Souvenirs (4:36)
03 Probably (3:29)
04 All Together On 3 (5:00)
05 Launching a Satellite (4:17)
06 This Whole Endeavor (4:35)
07 Tell Colleen to Calm Down (3:50)
08 Shake It Like You Mean It (3:10)
09 Hearts Are Fragile (3:29)
10 The Logical Conclusion (4:21)
ALBUM CREDITS
Lyrics & music by Erich Specht (ASCAP)
Produced by Doug McBride and Erich Specht
Mixed & mastered by Doug McBride at Gravity Studios
Recorded in Chicago at Gravity Studios and Erich Specht’s studio
Erich Specht – lead vocals, guitars, string arrangements
Steve Frisbie – backup vocals
Kyle Magnusson – keyboards
John William Lauler – bass
Greg Essig – drums
Stephanie “Sly” Young – violin
Janis Sakai – violin
Katherine Andrick – viola
Molly Rife – cello
Mitch “The Lip” Goldman – trumpet on ;Hearts Aren’t Souvenirs’
Tom Trinka – saxophone on ‘Hearts Aren’t Souvenirs”
Norman Friede – trombone on ‘Hearts Aren’t Souvenirs’
Tommi Zender – add. vocals, guitar, charango on ‘This Whole Endeavor’ & ‘Hearts Are Fragile’
Cover artwork by Crow Prints
Released & published by Flowering Tree Music (ASCAP)
Videos produced by Scott Thiele and Sebastian Gonzales
Video editing and animation by Metamorse Studio
Artist studio photos by Gintas Zaranka
Artist live photos by Gabi Bucataru
Publicity by Shameless Promotion PR