In anticipation for his first-ever solo effort, LaMacchia partnered with New Noise to release the video for moody balad “Angels Delight.” The new album, Thunderheads will be out this Friday, May 20th and pre-orders are available.
Featuring the lush vocals of Candice Freshko, “Angels Delight” is one of the moodier orchestrations on the album, full of pulsating electronics and evocative guitar that show off the versatile talent of John LaMacchia.
Says LaMacchia, “Writing ‘Angels Delight’ with Candice Freshko was one of the greatest collaborative efforts I have ever been a part of. It was truly one of the most inspiring creative experiences I’ve ever had. It is the centerpiece of the album for a reason. Making the video for ‘Angels Delight’ was easy for me. All I had to do was capture Candice in her element. After shooting with her and watching the footage, I knew the focus of the video was going to be her breathtaking, and captivating performance.”
Adds Freshko, “Creating and making ‘Angels Delight’ with John was unexplainable. The energy, love and inspiration that was fulfilled helped me release demons that started to fester. I couldn’t be happier with how it turned out.”
Though he’s arguably best known as the guitarist for Brooklyn hardcore/prog-metal group Candiria, LaMacchia’s new solo material is unlike anything the multi-instrumentalist has done to date and shows a new breadth to his abilities.In total, Thunderheads presents a far-reaching experimental indie rock vibe, with layered sonic nuances and male-female vocal interplay that presents a dimensional new palette that is comparable to Massive Attack, Doves and Radiohead.
Composed and recorded over the course of 2020 and 2021 during the pandemic break, Thunderheads plays like a lullaby for the apocalypse. With healthy doses of self-respect and emotional bravery that serve as a salve for our pandemic-weary heart, it allows listeners to escape a world that is falling apart with music and creativity.
In addition to John LaMacchia, who has recorded all of the guitars, vocals, keyboards and programming for Thunderheads, additional guest contributions come courtesy of Kellii Scott (Failure) on drums, Michael MacIvor (Candiria) on bass guitar, Mario Quintero (Spotlights) on keyboards and Andrea Horne (Vaureen), Candice Freshko and Sabrina Ellie on vocals.
Says Kellii Scott, “At the time when John submitted songs to me to play on, I was completely unfamiliar with his history and pedigree as a musician. That being said I did know that he had written some really great material, with great melody and arrangements and that I was going to have a fantastic time playing on his songs. In particular I found ‘Bled Out’ to be really inspiring to play, so much so that I channeled a drummer that I previously had never been.”
The track listing for Thunderheads includes:
1 Bled Out
2 Put You Down
3 A Ghost Of Tectonic Plates
4 It’s All Over Now
5 Angels Delight
6 Disconnect
7 Pagliacci Kid
8 Bad Penny
9 YRUTHEWAYUR
Presales for Thunderheads are available now at Aqualamb Records’ website with blue and pink vinyl variants, CD and digital options. Each purchase comes with an accompanying 100-page book filled with lush artwork, drawings, lyrics and additional content to get inside the mind of LaMacchia and the creative process.
LaMacchia is the new project led by musician and artist John LaMacchia of Brooklyn prog-metal’s legendary Candiria. The result is what we wish post-aughts music would have sounded like; layered with new-wave moodiness, and akin to Autolux, Massive Attack, Doves and Liars, to name a few. And with the musicians he sought out to fulfill that burden, including Kellii Scott on drums (Failure), Michael MacIvor on bass (Candiria), Mario Quintero (Spotlights) and vocalists Sabrina Ellie, Candice Freshko and Andrea Horne (Vaureen).
