Eden by Spirits of Leo
Spirits of Leo are a post-punk band founded by singer Ryan Santos Phillips in Santa Rosa, CA and currently based in Brooklyn, NY. Inspired by artists like The Cure, The Chameleons and Red House Painters, Spirits of Leo deliver ethereal soundscapes united with driving intensity and immersive performances.
Equinox is the self-produced, forthcoming LP from the band. Written and recorded by Phillips over the course of four years, Equinox is a marked departure from the band’s previous discography, exploring darker, more cultivated themes and textures. Equinox is set to be released on March 23rd, 2018 through Lux Perpetua, and is on Bandcamp here – https://spiritsofleo.bandcamp.com/album/equinox
“Spirits of Leo started in December 2012, when I was a 19-year-old attending junior college,” Phillips explains. “At that time, it felt as if nobody in my immediate vicinity seemed interested in making the kind of music I was desperate to make. I’d always loved the sounds of the New Wave era, having grown up on those kinds of records. I began recording my own tracks one layer at a time, experimenting with various effects and borrowing a friend’s microphone, until the songs felt finished, into what would become the first self-titled EP. Much of the subject matter at that time centered on anxieties, nightmares, isolation, and feelings of helplessness. Shortly after being posted on Bandcamp, Spirits of Leo was met with warm reception from my peers and in music blogs overseas. After that, I felt encouraged to pursue a more ambitious project as Spirits, Anastasia (2013), the first full-length album.”
“Until last year, Equinox was only a concept, a collection of demos dating back to late 2013. The unfinished album had been weighing on me for years until finally, I decided to fully construct the album, filling-in missing pieces, re-writing, re-recording guitar parts, re-recording vocals, polishing, and mixing. Like the rest of the album, both songs were self-recorded on my two-input audio interface, partially in my parents’ home in Northern California and in my room in Brooklyn (apart from the drums, which were later recorded in a professional studio).”
“"Eden” was written and recorded in one, overnight sitting. It was a response to a major breach of trust and dealing with that pain, which felt immovable at the time. The lyrics deal with attachment, infidelity, trust, and a world capsized.“
Links:
https://www.facebook.com/spiritsofleo
https://spiritsofleo.bandcamp.com
https://www.songkick.com/artists/8184238-spirits-of-leo
