‘This album is all about ebbs and flows. It’s been a very interesting few years to say the least, both personally and in terms of the world. I always kept coming back to the concept of Tides, the cyclical nature of everything and the way sadness gives way to happiness… and vice versa. It all works out in the end though… and regardless of what’s happening, the sea is still there, a constant in the madness.’
Working closely with string arranger Thomas Lea (Adele/Bonobo/Rhye), Catching Flies, real name George King, has created his most emotional and cohesive project yet. A beautiful, moving record, with sounds that unmistakably come straight from the heart, it’s all held together by a singular sense of purpose and that trademark intricacy. ‘I wanted it to feel as intricate and as layered as possible. I tried to really push myself musically. The challenge was – how do I make this sound much bigger than a guy sitting in a room with a laptop and a MIDI keyboard?’
Typically wide-ranging in genre, the album highlights his ability to effortlessly manoeuvre and experiment across the spectrum of electronic music, from hip-hop to house, from soul to neo-classical. The album is led by new single ‘Halo,’ which sees him at his best - a melodic mesh of harp samples, vocal chops and a soaring string quartet finale. It’s highly textured, deeply melodic and effortlessly marries live instrumentation with warm electronic beats. ‘Spring’ utilises a vocal sample he found whilst touring China, and ‘The Last Phone Call’ merges a spoken word voice-note from a friend with a vocal recorded on his iPhone on Hampstead Heath - ‘I was pushing my bike and heard this guy singing in the distance, hidden in the trees… I had to EQ out the sound of my bike wheels turning to make it work.’ ‘Tides’ caused the most headache - ‘it went through about 20 different versions and ended up having 270 tracks of audio - there’s so much in there that you don’t necessarily hear on first listen.’ The album also includes the ‘absolutely brilliant’ (Lauren Laverne, BBC6 Music) hit single ‘GLY’ which has received over 20 million streams to date and came with remixes by revered British dance/pop band Hot Chip, and Ninja Tune’s DJ Boring. Also featured is piano piece ‘Diamonds,’ which has gathered artist support from the likes of Nils Frahm and Jungle. The album will be released in combination with a live video performance featuring a string quartet and a harpist.
Catching Flies has just hit 1.8 million monthly listeners on Spotify – no mean feat given he is a truly independent artist. It has been a busy couple of years. He was nominated for a BAFTA for his composition work on a video game, he played a headline show at the iconic Musee D’Orsay in Paris with a string quartet in collaboration with Cercle, and has toured North America, the UK, Europe, India, and China. He has also recently worked with Erick The Architect and Lord Apex.
Catching Flies released his debut album ‘Silver Linings’ in July 2019. Containing shades of everything from hip-hop to house, from soul to jazz, it was hailed as ‘a soundtrack to Summertime’ by the 405 - and was awarded album of the month by Future Music who described it as ‘a brilliantly eclectic record… a moving journey that will last long in the memory.’ Clash Magazine praised the LP’s ‘killer beats’ and ‘artfully orchestrated introspection,’ whilst London In Stereo praised it’s ‘exceptional production.’ Other press coverage for the album included The Guardian, Complex, Nowness, Mixmag, iD Magazine, Dazed & Confused, The Line of Best Fit and more. He has received radio support from the likes of Gilles Peterson, Pete Tong, Annie Mac, Lauren Laverne, Mary Anne Hobbes & Huw Stephens. Artist support for ‘Silver Linings’ has come from the likes of Bonobo, Caribou, Loyle Carner, The Blessed Madonna, Keinemusik, Rufus Du Sol, George Fitzgerald and Lane 8. He toured the album performing headline Live shows throughout the UK, Europe, Asia and North America, as well as DJ shows at Bonobo’s ‘OUTLIER’ event series in Europe and North America. Silver Linings was followed by ‘Silver Linings Remixed,’ a remix album featuring versions of tracks from his debut album reimagined by DJ Seinfeld, Andhim, Soundbwoy Killah, Laurence Guy, Ron Basejam, Grandbrothers, Trim and more.
Catching Flies has gathered the consistent support of Gilles Peterson, Annie Mac, Lauren Laverne, Julie Adenuga & Huw
Stephens and a growing fanbase which has seen him perform across the UK, Europe, the USA and Asia. He also took his live show on the road as European tour support for electronic-jazz behemoth Bonobo....more
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