In early 2023, I am excited and honored to be releasing my third official studio album, Accidental Days. In the meantime, I have decided to release an EP that features three of that album’s ten songs. The EP, titled My Heart Settled in the Middle, is available now (for free or pay-what-you-want) on Bandcamp, and the EP will be streaming everywhere as of October 28, 2022.
About the EP:
My Heart Settled in the Middle features three songs about being in the in-between, seeking solid ground upon which to stand, with an overabundance of questions and a lack of understanding, closure, or finality. Ironically, these three tracks are also taken directly from the middle stretch of my upcoming third studio album, Accidental Days. I decided to put this EP together after realizing that I would not be able to release Accidental Days in 2022 as originally planned. The full album is now due in early 2023, and I think this EP makes a fitting standalone project as I ask you, my friends, to wait a few extra months before getting to hear the full thing.
This collection includes a few firsts for me: my first vocoder on “Middle of My Words,” my first swing-time song with “Settled in the Unsettled,” and my first drum loop on “Heart Reset.” It also contains a few regular ingredients from me, such as mid-tempo drum grooves, big three- and four-part harmonies, confessional lyrics that feel auto-biographical (even when they aren’t), and a guest appearance from frequent collaborator Theo MacMillan (of the bluegrass band Theo & Brenna), who provides guest vocals and piano on “Settled in the Unsettled,” just as he did on last year’s “Wings Not Made to Fly.”
What might surprise listeners is how few “rock” moments appear across this brief EP. (You’ll have to wait to hear the heaviest, most rocking songs on Accidental Days.) But these three songs do a great job of representing what the larger project was originally supposed to sound like: a softer, acoustic guitar-driven affair that leans away from electric guitars and instead leans into soundscapes, synths, and out-of-the-box percussion choices. As I began working on these ten songs with producer Brendan St. Gelais, I had a vision for how the songs could be thoroughly reimagined as big, riffy rock songs, aligned with my first album, Unfall. Fans of Unfall will have a lot to look forward to when Accidental Days releases, but this EP stands as a fascinating artifact for what another version of the entire album could’ve sounded like — especially the dusty, country/folk swagger of “Settled” and the drum machine + acoustic vibes of “Heart Reset.”
I sincerely hope that these songs help you to navigate your own experiences of heartbreak, healing, argumentation, confusion, cognitive dissonance, and searching for truth. The EP is free or pay-what-you-want on Bandcamp, and the songs will be available on all streaming services on October 28, 2022. (Recommendation: the brand new Theo & Brenna album also releases on October 28. Check it out!)
Author’s Note: The reason I created this website and write these articles stems from my belief that artists should support other artists, in the same way that art inspires art. If you would like to hear my music, my sophomore album Development & Compromise and my debut album Unfall are streaming every or available for free/pay-what-you-want on Bandcamp. To be the first to receive news and previews of unreleased music, sign up for my monthly newsletter.
Chase Tremaine 