Bambara have announced the release of Love On My Mind – a six song mini-album, mixed by Claudius Mittendorfer – and they have also shared the first single “Mythic Love“, which features Bria Salmena (Orville Peck/Frigs) and Drew Citron (Public Practice). Love On My Mind will be released on Wharf Cat on February 25th, 2022.
“In ‘Mythic Love’ we see the two protagonists of the record meet for the first time.” Reid Bateh explains. “There’s an immediate attraction that seems almost out of their control. The song is about riding that first manic wave of infatuation wherever it leads, dismantling all of your previous associations with love along the way.”
Listen to “Mythic Love” and watch the video for it below:
The completion of the mini-album was not without its challenges. With the band’s core (twin brothers Reid and Blaze Bateh, the singer and drummer, and childhood friend William Brookshire, bass) scattered across the US, they remotely pieced together an EP but as soon as it was finished, they scrapped it. In their words, it felt “dishonest”. They were striving for something new and they hadn’t hit the mark. They realized they needed to change approach so at that point they decided to reconvene in New York. Finally, things started to take shape.
By now, they had a better idea of where they wanted to head. They knew they wanted to include a couple of duets and enlisted the vocals of Bria Salmena (Orville Peck/Frigs) and Drew Citron (Public Practice). They also wanted to expand their sound palette so turned to Jason Disu and Jeff Tobias (Sunwatchers) to add trombone and saxophone respectively. They recorded again, utilizing all these new elements, sampling their recordings as they went along, in the process manipulating the sounds across the release.
“The lyrics for Love on My Mind are a little more personal,” Bateh admits, “and definitely more vulnerable and human. There’s more of a focus on realism. I think part of that was because I’d become zoned in on photography during lockdown. Being in NYC without being able to actually experience it made me search for representations of the way it feels to be running around in the city. And I found that in photographs. Mainly, Ballad of Sexual Dependency by Nan Goldin. This also influenced the decision to make one of the characters in the story a photographer, presenting pieces of the story through her snapshots.”
Love On My Mind artwork & tracklist:
1. Slither In The Rain
2. Mythic Love
3. Birds
4. Point and Shoot
5. Feel Like a Funeral
6. Little Wars
Tour Dates:
7 Dec – Richmond, VA – Richmond Music Hall (w/ Nothing)
8 Dec – Durham, NC – Motorco Music Hall (w/ Nothing)
9 Dec – Columbia, SC – New Brookland Tavern (w/ Nothing)
10 Dec – Orlando, FL – Soundbar (w/ Nothing)
11 Dec – Miami, FL – Gramps (w/ Nothing)
12 Dec – Tampa, FL – Crowbar (w/ Nothing)
14 Dec – Atlanta, GA – The Earl (w/ Nothing)
15 Dec – Nashville, TN – Mercy Lounge (w/ Nothing)
16 Dec – Louisville, KY – Headliners Music Hall (w/ Nothing)
17 Dec – Columbus, OH – Ace of Cups (w/ Nothing)
01 March – Paris, France – Élysée Montmartre (w/IDLES)
02 March – Lyon, France – Le Transbordeur (w/IDLES)
03 March – Milan, Italy – Fabrique Milano (w/IDLES)
06 March – Toulouse, France – Le Bikini (w/IDLES)
07 March – Bilbao, Spain – Santana 27 (w/IDLES)
09 March – Barcelona, Spain – Sala Razzmatazz (w/IDLES)
10 March – Madrid, Spain – La Riviera (w/IDLES)
11 March – Lisbon, Portugal – Lisbon Coliseum (w/IDLES)
13 March – Bordeaux, France – Rock School Barbey – Club
15 March – Lille, France – L’Aéronef
16 March – Leffinge (Middelkerke), Belgium – De Zwerver
17 March – Hannover, Germany – Cafe Glocksee
18 March – Berlin, Germany – Urban Spree
20 March – Copenhagen, Denmark – Loppen
21 March – Hamburg, Germany – Hafenklang
22 March – Amsterdam, Netherlands – Paradiso
23 March – Nijmegen, Netherlands – Merleyn
24 March – Groningen, Netherlands – Vera
25 March – Haldern, Germany – Haldern Pop Bar UG
26 March – Antwerp, Belgium – Trix Bar
28 March – Cologne, Germany – Bumann & Sohn
29 March – Luxembourg, Luxembourg – Rotondes
30 March – Paris, France – La Boule Noire
01 April – Bedford, United Kingdom – Bedford Esquires
02 April – Guildford, United Kingdom – The Boileroom
03 April – Southampton, United Kingdom – Joiners Arms
04 April – Brighton, United Kingdom – CHALK
06 April – Hebden Bridge, United Kingdom – The Trades Club
07 April – London, United Kingdom – Dome Tufnell Park
08 April – Cambridge, United Kingdom – Portland Arms
09 April – Norwich, United Kingdom – Norwich Arts Centre
11 April – Leicester, United Kingdom – The Cookie
12 April – Leeds, United Kingdom – Brudenell Social Club
13 April – Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom – The Cluny
14 April – Edinburgh, United Kingdom – Sneaky Pete’s
15 April – Edinburgh, United Kingdom – Sneaky Pete’s
16 April – Glasgow, United Kingdom – Stereo
18 April – Sheffield, United Kingdom – The Leadmill
19 April – Birmingham, United Kingdom – The Castle & Falcon
20 April – Bristol, United Kingdom – Thekla
21 April – Mancheste, United Kingdom – Gorilla
22 April – Nottingham, United Kingdom – Rescue Rooms
23 April – Cardiff, United Kingdom – Clwb Ifor Bach