Ride's Andy Bell collaborates with Masal on new LP 'Tidal Love Numbers' (stream a track)
Ride‘s Andy Bell has collaborated with duo Masal on a new album, Tidal Love Numbers, which will be out May 19 via Sonic Cathedral.
Masal, aka Al Johnson (who also records as Alien) and harpist Oz Simsek, opened for Bell, and they bonded over a shared love of Promises, the 2021 album by Floating Points, Pharoah Sanders and The London Symphony Orchestra. “After hearing it, I felt there was something in that area for me, if I found the right collaborators,” says Andy. “So, I was kind of on the lookout from that point. I’ve always loved the sound of harp music – Alice Coltrane and Joanna Newsom are both firm favourites – and so, when I met Oz and Al, it seemed like it could be a good combination.”
“The moment Andy mentioned his love of the Floating Points/Pharoah Sanders album, I knew we were thinking along the same lines,” says Oz. “As a lifelong shoegazer, Al already shared a common musical background and direction, but we got chatting over texts and emails and very soon we were exchanging musical ideas.”
The album, which was mastered by Bell’s Ride bandmate Mark Gardner, is made up of four lengthy ambient, astral jazz compositions with titles as out-there as the music. “I wanted super-long titles like Felt,” says Andy. “And I wanted to cram into them as much imagery and emotion as possible.”
With the album announcement they’ve shared a portion of penultimate track “Tidal Love Conversation In That Familiar Golden Orchard,” which Bell says is “the closest we have come to a conventional arrangement. It has a recognisable riff and a beat, but still floats free of it most of the time.” Listen to that below.
Andy Bell & Masal will make their live debut at London’s The Social on Sunday, May 21.
Meanwhile, Ride are working on a new album and will play their 1992 album Going Blank Again in full at Seattle’s Bumbershoot Festival in September.
Tidal Love Numbers:
1. Murmuration Of Warm Dappled Light On Her Back After Swimming
2. The Slight Unease Of Seeing A Crescent Moon In Blue Midday Sky
3. Tidal Love Conversation In That Familiar Golden Orchard
4. A Pyramid Hidden By Centuries Of Neon Green Undergrowth
