Detroit retro-pop outfit Empty Houses are gearing up to release their debut album, Daydream, on June 10 via the relentlessly excellent Sargent House imprint (pre-order), and Crave is giving fans a head start with a full-album exclusive premiere ahead of release.
Produced by four-time Grammy-winner Graham Marsh (Bruno Mars, CeeLo Green, Common) and Empty Houses at Parhelion Studios in Atlanta, Daydream calls back to the soulful Motown essence of their roots. Brassy horns, pounding piano and straight-up hip-hijacking danceability deliver a bright atmosphere that takes the retro-pop ebullience of Fitz & The Tantrums and soaks it in the kind of Motor City heart usually only seen in fleeting glimpses on the abandoned blocks, faded facades and ghosts of what was, once upon a time, a city of such passion and vitality.
“We’re so excited to share these songs with everyone,” the band shared with Crave ahead of the premiere. “We’ve been sitting on them for several months now but they feel like they’ve been years in the making. I feel like we’ve had these songs in us since long before the band got together, and it feels great to finally let people hear them.”
Listen to Empty Houses’ debut album Daydream in full below, exclusively premiered on Crave:
A Michigan native myself, just the sight of the Mackinac Bridge on the album cover is enough to inspire a thousand memories of Summer travels up north, stopping for fudge and pictures by the bridge, fishing with Dad, the rituals of loading the family into the car just before sunset to count deer at the treeline and beyond. And when the music hits, the stories our parents and grandparents told us of How Things Used To Be before Michigan went through economic hell come into full color, a vicarious nostalgia with enough potency to pass as direct reference. Daydream brings you back, even if you’ve never been there.
Pre-order Daydream on iTunes, and keep up with Empty Houses: Twitter | Facebook | Official Website
