North London trio, Girl Ray have just announced the release of their third album Prestige, via Moshi Moshi, due on 4th August 2023. Returning with an album of unapologetically escapist alt-pop anthems, Girl Ray shape-shift again, as they look back to the post-disco dancefloors of the early eighties with a record that feels almost subversive in its optimism. In the space of just three albums they’ve gone from janglepop darlings to being one of the most exhilarating and original pop bands around. Prestige takes the chaotic charm of their debut, Earl Grey (2017) and the indie -R&B of 2019’s Girl, and injects it with a booster shot of high energy disco pop.
Their upcoming album is the sound of Girl Ray reclaiming disco music as the celebration of sexuality and outsider culture of its origins. Their latest video ‘Hold Tight’ gives us a taste of the LP with lyrics like, “Call me when you want to get a coke and sit on the wall”- a gigantic declaration of love. Poppy said, “Lyrically this songs is about how appreciative I am to have found my partner, and how my mental load feels so much lighter and easier to bear now that I’m with her. The production on this takes some inspiration from Haim‘s incredible record ‘Women in Music Pt. III’, and features a subby drum loop inspired by Atlanta’s hip hop scene.” Watch here:
Speaking of the video, Poppy said “Despite being caught in heavy rain the whole day, falling over in the mud countless times, and Alex constantly holding an umbrella over the camera, this video was so much fun to make, and we will remember it as one of our favourite shoots.”
Director Alex Cantouris explained “To mark the eighth video me and Girl Ray have done together…. we thought what better way to honour the occasion than to drive seven hours to the Lake District and spend a whole day filming in the rain. Fortunately, the rain made the perfect backdrop for us to combine our theme of Bananarama meets 19th century Western aesthetic. Frankly, once cow patterned clothes were mentioned, the video really made itself.”
‘Hold Tight’ follows the release of “Everybody’s Saying That”, which was inspired by ”the straight-to-the-heart simplicity of the disco greats”
Bringing their deep understanding of modern pop and the bittersweet melodies of ABBA and Kate Bush and mixing it all together with the post-punk playfulness of Orange Juice and a love of Donna Summer and Yellow Magic Orchestra, Girl Ray have come back with a life affirming celebration of the transformative power of pop music at its most glorious. Girl Ray will play this year’s Green Man Festival (17- 20 August) and will announce more live dates soon.
Prestige is out on 4th August 2023 via Moshi Moshi Pre-save / pre-order HERE
