“Tomorrow Never Comes” is the latest offering from Los Angeles based quartet, The Bixby Knolls. The four song EP was recorded and mixed at Station House Studios in Echo Park, CA between December 2013 and January 2014. Although their debut album, Near & Undear was a collection of songs written over a 5 year period while the band’s line-up took form, “Tomorrow Never Comes” was written mostly within a year and captures a mood and sound in a compressed period of time.
“Although we feel the tunes still express the raw melodies and energy as the first album, there’s a more sinister overtone to these four tracks,” says singer and guitarist for the group, Curt Barlage.
“Juvenile Heart Crime,” the opening track, was originally written for a side project of Barlage’s–with the original demo being more of an electronic style recording. Those electronic elements were taken into consideration whilst recorded by The Knolls–with the sequenced synth sounds replaced by acoustic instruments and live-playing to give it more of an organic and dynamic feeling.
“Preacher, Teacher,” the second track off the order, is the youngest song of the batch—written just a month before production. The song features a traditional Japanese instrument, the Koto, that belonged to Barlage’s mother back in her musical performance days.
“‘Tomorrow Never Comes’ is a darker, more nocturnal side of The Bixby Knolls,” says Barlage.
The third and title track, “Tomorrow Never Comes,” is considered by the group to be the deepest and most emotionally driven song by The Bixby Knolls to date. Barlage states its lyrics encompass “a moment in life in which death, disease, denial of responsibilities, and immense anxiety stole the spotlight,” but ultimately created some of his most favored writings thus far.
The closing track, “You Gotta Give, You Gotta Move On” is the Knolls’ take on a dance floor stomper. With its social-political charged message, rolling bass line, and dub echo Latin percussion, the Knolls consider this tune to be the perfect way to close out an EP and reminding its listeners to keep their heads up high and fight the good fight.
The “Tomorrow Never Comes” EP is set for world-wide release in early August 2014. They will be performing and celebrating their release at The Echo in Los Angeles, CA on Saturday, August 2nd with Alexandra & The Starlight Band.
