We are proud to announce the release of “The View From Halfway Down”, the debut solo album by Andy Bell from Ride, on October 9th. There will be two limited-edition vinyl variants: blue, which will be available from shops, and a white and blue splatter which will only be available from Bandcamp. There will also be a CD version in a card mini-LP sleeve, plus a full digital release.
It’s an incredible record and the first single, the five-minute burst of psychedelic joy that is ‘Love Comes In Waves’, is out now on all digital platforms after being premiered yesterday by BBC Radio 6 Music. Watch the Vanishing Point-meets-‘Strawberry Fields Forever’ video by Chris Tomsett, aka Innerstrings. Not only does the release of a solo album signal a brand new chapter for Andy, some 30-odd years into his career, the announcement also coincides with his 50th birthday today (August 11).
The product of a gradual, four-year process and finished during lockdown, The View From Halfway Down was made by Andy, engineered by Gem Archer and mastered by Heba Kadry. The end result sits somewhere between Ride’s widescreen shoegaze and GLOK’s darkly textured electronics. “I’ve always wanted to make a solo album, I’ve always said I would do it, although I never imagined it happening like, or sounding like, this one,” explains Andy. “I’d been sitting on this pile of almost finished tracks, along with all the other hundreds of ideas that had fallen by the wayside since I’ve been making music. Lockdown gave me the opportunity to find a way to present it to the world.”
Love comes in waves, psychedelic raves, lost nights, found in days of volume, fuzz and delays. If you’re searching for meaning, or a secret worth revealing, and you’re missing the feeling of connection, a reflection back from above, you’re ready to ride the first wave of love. Love comes in waves, give us a wave, I’m one step away, lost in the maze. If you’re searching for meaning, or a secret worth revealing, temptation is calling and your self control is falling, if your friends started stopping, but for you there’s no dropping off at all, and you’re missing the feeling of connection, a reflection back from above, you’re ready to ride the first wave of love. The first single from Andy Bell’s debut solo album ‘The View From Halfway Down’, released on Sonic Cathedral on 9th October, 2020.
Written and performed by Andy Bell
