The High Water Marks
THE HIGH WATER MARKS | YOUR NEXT WOLF | MINTY FRESH | JUNE 23, 2023
Bio:
“It was insanely fun!,” says Hilarie Sidney of The High Water Marks about making Your Next Wolf, the band’s upcoming 17-track album, scheduled for release on June 9 via Chicago-based imprint Minty Fresh.
Your Next Wolf is the third “comeback” record in as many years by Sidney and her band mates in The High Water Marks, following the end of a 13-year absence.
The songs on Your Next Wolf contain all the memorable pop melodies, intricate, blazing guitar solos and riffs, washes of psychedelia and percussive punch (plus Sidney’s unmistakable voice) that have been trademarks of her long music career. Here, they are an even more to-the-point, sophisticated, and amped up experience.
Based in both Grøa, Norway and Lexington, KY, the current incarnation of The High Water Marks — which includes Sidney, Per Ole Bratset, Øystein Megård, and Logan Miller — had never performed live in the same room.
That was until October of 2022 when, “We played our first show with all four of us together in Oslo opening for Pavement,” Sidney says.
Most artists would consider this a big break, but Sidney goes way back with Stephen Malkmus and the boys, having toured together before as part of her previous band The Apples In Stereo.
The Apples In Stereo is one of the three cornerstone groups (along with Neutral Milk Hotel and Olivia Tremor Control) that comprised the Elephant 6 Recording Co., the revered recording collective and record company that was the recent subject of a festival circuit feature documentary and an exhaustively researched book, both released in 2022.
Sidney was the sole female co-founder of Elephant 6 and The Apples, but in a music world where women continue to fight for recognition from gatekeeping men, this fact remains one that must continue to be talked about.
“It’s not often mentioned how much influence women had over the Elephant 6 movement at the time,” explains Bratset. “Hilarie is the founding member cranking out the most exciting new music right now.”
And Your Next Wolf is pretty exciting!
This time, the band was able to record in the same room at Miller’s studio in Kentucky.
“After making two albums remotely, we proved that we could come together in person and make music that way too,” Sidney says.
Acclaimed engineer, Justin Pizzoferrato (The Pixes, Lou Barlow, Dinosaur Jr) had become a fan of The High Water Marks and offered to mix Your Next Wolf, resulting in the most in-your-face sounding crunch that The High Water Marks has ever produced.
Your Next Wolf does not let up!
Once again, the record is accompanied by hand-drawn art by Bratset, whose images have become synonymous with The High Water Marks and something that fans immediately recognize.
“We are really happy with this record and we feel like it has the cohesive band sound and flow we were going for,” Sidney concludes.
Your Next Wolf by The High Water Marks arrives June 9, 2023 via Minty Fresh. The album’s first single “Trouble From The East” is out now.
ARCHIVE:
For Info and Assets about Proclaimer of Things, the 2022 album by The High Water Marks, click here.
For Info and Assets about Ecstasy Rhymes, the 2020 album by The High Water Marks, click here.
NEWS:
PRESS QUOTES:
“Instantly recalls the heyday of Elephant 6, with an earworm melody nestled in fuzzy indie rock production.”
“Clock-stopping, pulse-raising mega-pop.”
“Complex and considered arrangements... Sugar-coated melodies to spare.”
“Beautifully warm, catchy, high-energy... garage pop for the masses.”
“Winning post-punk pop that’s heavy on the fuzz. Potent melodies and propulsive hooks. An irresistible power pop gem.”
“Giddy pop... Punchy songwriting... Undeniably sunny.”
“Overtly tuneful, with hints of post-punk grit and wistful psychedelia.”
“Get a fix of the exquisitely crafted brand of lo-fi rock.”
“Infectious hooks, crashing drums and guitars, and delicious harmonies... Punk energy... Music that is made for jumping around to.”
“It’s classic indie rock, yeah, but there is something more coursing through its melodic veins, resulting in a wry distillation of influence and experience which few bands can express with any sense of finality. The High Water Marks manage this herculean task without the least bit of effort.”
“Top-notch indie pop-rock tracks abound.”
“Norway is also known as one of the happiest countries in the world. With its bright indie rock sound and upbeat melodies, this album is certainly evidence of that.”
“A blast of hook-laden numbers that careen and roll mightily away with jangling precision and indie rock smarts.”
“‘Ecstasy Rhymes’ seems to give 90’s indie pop/rock a fresh new look and it sounds fantastic.”
“A stripped down and almost punky take on the E6 sound that Sidney helped invent.”
“To have two stellar albums appear in such a short period of time is remarkable.”
“Kicking along with an infectious momentum, capturing all the addictive sweet and sour overtones... drenched in fuzz for good measure.”
“It’s the gravitational pull of the group’s work. They’re willing to blow your hair back.”
LIVE:
06/29/2023: Oslo, Norway @ Last Train (RSVP)
PRESS RELEASES:
SOCIALS:
Facebook: www.facebook.com/highwatermarks
Instagram: www.instagram.com/thehighwatermarks
Twitter: www.twitter.com/thehwms
LISTEN:
Bandcamp: thehighwatermarks.bandcamp.com
Spotify: spoti.fi/3gsT21U
Apple: apple.co/3llpEho
Assets:
The High Water Marks (L-R): Per Ole Bratset, Hilarie Sidney, Øystein Megård, Logan Miller. Photo credit: Amanda Burford, Illustration by Per Ole Bratset. Click for hi-res.
“Dream Some More” single cover art. Click for hi-res.
“American Candy” single cover art. Click for hi-res.
“Let’s Hang Out Forever” single cover art. Click for hi-res.
“An Imposed Exile” single cover art. Click for hi-res.
“Trouble From The East” single cover art. Click for hi-res.