Download from Bandcamp

Vinyl
Side A
1. Summer Begins
2. Footsteps (vinyl version)
3. Silhouettes (vinyl version)
4. You and Me and the Sea
5. Signs Of Life (vinyl version)

Side B
1. Seven Wonders
2. Kaleidoscope
3. Crystaline Part 2
4. Talking To Machines
5. The Final Kiss

CD
1. Summer Begins
2. Footsteps (CD version)
3. Letters To The Girl *
4. Silhouettes (CD version)
5. You and Me and the Sea
6. Signs Of Life (CD version)
7. Seven Wonders
8. Kaleidoscope
9. Crystaline Part 2
10. Talking To Machines
11. Dreaming of Another Girl *
12. Icelandic * (CD version)
13. All The Books *
14. Not So Far Away *
15. The Final Kiss

Includes unlimited streaming of Snowdrops and Hot Air Balloons via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.

Download available in 24-bit/44.1kHz.

They say you should start as you mean to go on and that’s exactly what the Proctors do on the evocatively titled Snowdrops and Hot Air Balloons. “Summer Begins” is the epitome of bittersweet jangling beauty, complete with glistening synths. There’s more than a hint of Liverpool’s eternally wonderful Wild Swans. And the message? Seasons change and hope returns - in amongst the inevitable sadness, never forget to be kind to yourself.

It’s an invigorating start to a record that’s been a long time coming.

Within cover art evoking idealised summers of days long gone, we have a collection of gems that balance delicacy, exultant boy/girl harmonies and an overt sense of nostalgia. Just check the vivid Covent Garden located scene that opens “Signs of Life,” drawing heavily on music’s Proustian ability to transport us to specific moments in time, it’s beautiful.

But don’t mistake delicacy and sensitivity for lack of energy, “You Me and the Sea” enters on a rush of crystalline sweetness yet isn’t afraid to unfurl a grittier guitar solo as it races to an end, while “Talking to Machines” is a soaring stomp that moves to a heart-stopping coda. Both are indicative of an album that is never hesitant or tentative even in its quietest moments; this is widescreen, cinematic indie pop at its best,

If you miss the days when songs made you swoon then heaven awaits.

Simon Heavisides

An IndiePop Label founded in 1990, Chicago, IL

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