TOY have shared a new version of the single I’m Still Believing, which was remixed by Tim Gane of Stereolab’s new outfit Cavern of Anti-Matter. The remix sees the track stripped of its chiming guitars in turn for a building, electronic exploration with nods to the likes of New Order. Take a listen via Thump here.
Capturing the essence of TOY’s penchant for multifaceted arrangements, the remix stems from a beat-heavy multi-layered opening before developing from a blessed-out middle section, incorporating pulsating organ-like synths, into it’s intricate close.
On this, the band said: “We Really liked the COA-M remix when we heard it and thought it sounded a bit like Electronic. The second half builds in a really great way with the parts subtly taking over from one another; something with always loved in Tim’s music.”
Tim Gane added: “When I got the offer of a new TOY song to remix I immediately chose the track ‘I’m Still Believing’. It’s a great pop song and I really love the vocals. I wanted to keep the feel and flow of the song, the catchy melody and synth hook, but I also wanted to change the density and texture of the track; extend it beyond its 3-minute length and take it to some unknown places. Maybe I was expected to do a krautrock-y kind of mix, but it would have been silly to force that on a wonderful slice of British pop.”
The track itself is taken from TOY’s recently announced album ‘Clear Shot,’ due for release on October 28th, 2016 via Heavenly Recordings.
Splitting their time between Tom Dougall and bassist Maxim Barron’s place in New Cross and Dominic O’Dair’s flat in Walthamstow, where they set up a makeshift studio and laid down the early album demos, their new album ‘Clear Shot’ began to take shape in the first half of 2015.
Taking inspiration from an esoteric blend – Radiophonic Workshop, Comus, the scores of Bernard Herrmann, John Barry and Ennio Morricone Fairport, COUM, Acid House, Incredible String Band, The Langley Schools Project, The Wicker Man soundtrack and even the direction behind Electric Eden, Rob Young’s book about the development of folk music in the U.K. – by the time they entered Eve Studios in Stockport in October 2015 with producer David Wrench, the band were clear about the direction the album should take.
The result is their most coherent and confident album to date; lushly cinematic, shot through with their most expressive melodies thus far and coated with a ‘sheen’ courtesy of Chris Coady (Beach House, Smith Westerns, Yeah Yeah Yeahs), who mixed the album in LA with some of the reverbs and vocal processors used on Purple Rain, across the 10-tracks strands of ideas appear, sink and re-emerge in an almost modal jazz manner. ‘Clear Shot’ sees TOY working both in bigger colours and more minutely crafted detail, achieving an altogether higher level of artistry than before.
Track listing:
Clear Shot
Another Dimension
Fast Silver
I’m Still Believing
Clouds That Cover The Sun
Jungle Games
Dream Orchestrator
We Will Disperse
Spirits Don’t Lie
Cinema
TOY are: Tom Dougall (vocals / guitar), Dominic O’Dair (guitars), Maxim Barron (bass / vocals), Max Claps (synths / modulations) & Charlie Salvidge (drums / vocals).
For more information on TOY, visit thebandtoy.com.
