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SWEET CRUDE’S VIDEO FOR “PORKUPINE”
PREMIERES ON AMERICAN SONGWRITER
OFFICIEL//ARTIFICIEL OUT APRIL 24
VIA VERVE FORECAST
photo credit: Augusta Sagnelli |
New Orleans-based group Sweet Crude’s video for their latest song, “Porkupine” premieres on American Songwriter, who write, “The video rises to the energetic occasion of the song.” The track appears on the band’s forthcoming record, Officiel//Artificiel, which is set for release on April 24 via Verve Forecast. Watch/share it here: https://verveforecast.lnk.to/Porkupine
Of the song, vocalist and violinist Sam Craft says, “With ‘Porkupine,’ we wanted to write a kick-ass, shout-along anthem aimed at the underdogs, weirdos, and nerds. It’s got an industrial sort of sound to it, as the musical texture is filled with mouth noises, pots and pans, electronic arpeggios, a whole distorted brass section, and heavily compressed drums. Sweet Crude has probably never been this aggressive. The chorus repeats the lyric ‘sauvez-vous,’ meaning ‘save yourself’ and the song is meant to pump up anyone out there feeling disenfranchised.”
The new music has already begun to receive critical praise—NPR Music proclaims, “Sweet Crude sports a brightly booming pop sound and Cajun influences that extend to its bilingual lyrics,” while The Wild Honey Pie remarks, “Like their hometown, Sweet Crude’s songs are vibrant and colorful, flush with energy, spirit, and adventure.” Billboard called their lead single, “Déballez,” “[a] sparkling melody and Cajun-influenced groove.”
Officiel//Artificiel was recorded live at The Music Shed Studios and Below Studios in New Orleans by Sonny DiPerri (Animal Collective, Portugal. The Man, Trent Reznor, My Bloody Valentine, DIIV). The record is the work of a band full of evolving skill, feelings and ideas. Trust and comfort born of such a long relationship emanate off the stage during Sweet Crude’s live shows and on this album, further showcasing that when everything comes together the product is more than the sum of the parts. “It’s never one sound, and there’s always all of us in every song,” keyboardist Jack Craft says. “Every song feels like it’s been some collaborative splatter painting,” he remarks.
Vocalist and drummer Alexis Marceaux furthers, “The whole record is about trying to find your authentic self. Stripping yourself down and realizing what other people and society tell you to be, and what you actually are. And each song tells that story in its own little way.”
There are six musicians in the pop ensemble Sweet Crude, but their ultimate goal is duality. The lyrics are bilingual, with French and English lyrics sometimes sharing space in one song. The choice to write and sing in two languages came as members were still learning Louisiana French, the regional vernacular that was once commonly spoken in the Southern part of the state by descendants of antebellum immigrants. To the band, the sound of the language is an instrument in its own right, one more tool in the creative arsenal.
The band’s debut EP Super Vilaine was released in 2013 and featured their breakout single, “Parlez-Nous à Boire,” which appeared in FX’s “American Horror Story.” The group followed up with the release of their first full length album, Créatures.
Sweet Crude are Sam Craft (vocals, violin), Jack Craft (keys), Alexis Marceaux (vocals, drums), Stephen MacDonald (bass), David Shirley (drums) and Skyler Stroup (trumpet, keys, drums).
The band’s current run of tour dates in support of their forthcoming album has been postponed. Stay tuned for additional updates at sweetcrudeband.com.
Officiel//Artificiel can be pre-ordered at https://VerveForecast.lnk.to/OfficielArtificiel
