No Swoon Announce Forthcoming Sophomore Album "Take Your Time," Share Video for Lead Single "Beside"

I have a lot of fond memories of No Swoon’s time in Brooklyn. From appearing as a guest on one of the first live radio editions of Look At My Records! on Radio Free Brooklyn to their very memorable debut record release show at Union Pool in November of 2019, the band definitely made their mark on this city. While here, they released a series of attention-grabbing dreamgaze singles (which were eventually collected on flexi-disc) and their aforementioned stunning self-titled first full-length. The band relocated during the pandemic, trading the rough and tumble streets of New York for sunny Los Angeles, and now, they’re starting to share new material. If their output during their time on the east coast impressed you, then you’re most certainly going to enjoy what the band has in store for their next chapter.

Today, the duo are announcing the forthcoming release of their sophomore full-length, Take Your Time, and sharing the album’s lead single “Beside.” Back in late 2020, the band released a demo version of the track in conjunction with the sale of their Do It Ourselves Zine, and this final cut gives listeners a glimpse into some of the tweaks they’ve made to their sound. Specifically, “Beside” sees the duo leaning more into the dreamier side of the dreamgaze equation and taking the swoon in their namesake to heart, placing an emphasis on crafting a more ethereal sound. While their heavy, modulated guitar work played a large role on songs like “Don’t Wake Up, Wake Up,” and “On and On” from their first record, “Beside” only has a few light touches that start to sprout up around the halfway mark. Instead, Tasha Abbot’s voice plays a starring role, getting solid support from synths that twinkle at first, but add more girth as things progress. 

In a press release, Abbot shared that “Beside” documents the second part of a vivid dream, the first half of which is chronicled in “Don’t Wake Up, Wake Up.” If that song captures the menacing and confounding nature of being thrown into an unfamiliar dream world, “Beside” seems to reflect the comforting come down, at least sonically.  She shared the following on the lyrical inspiration: 

I have some really weird dreams. They are often these wide-ranging sci-fi stories. This song is part 2 of the same dream that inspired a song on our first record “Don’t wake up, wake up”. That dream had ended with meandering into a cave that turned out to be the home to a cult where everyone looked the same and seemed very “happy.” Though, obviously they were not very happy because it was a cult. I eventually got out.

The band also shared a video for “Beside,” which you can stream below.

Take Your Time is scheduled for release on April 8th via The Nothing Song. You can pre-order a copy on limited edition cassette via Bandcamp. You can also check out No Swoon on Spotify, Instagram, and Facebook.