It’s been a couple of years since we last heard from Idaho’s Up Is The Down Is The – their most recent album, The Mind Strays, arrived in June of 2020, and they’ve been quiet since then, until recently. No news did however turn out to be good news in this case, as the quartet announced an incoming new record last month. It’s a fascinating blend of art rock, R&B and electronica, and today we’re premiering its second single.
‘Memento’, as leader Andrew Martin explains, “is a song where the title and conversation surrounding the song highly influenced the direction and lyrics. We are all huge Christopher Nolan fans and what started out as a joke became the song. We started with a groove in 6/4 and a dissonant chord progression based on GoldLink’s ‘U Say‘. This was a good example of all of us working together to arrange parts that have each person’s personality. It’s a hopeful song for being so dissonant. I love the synth bass in the chorus and the ending came out of improvising a transition into the next song on the record. The character in the song is looking at themselves (‘a different pair of eyes staring back’) and talking to themselves and processing (‘tables have turned’ and ‘the more you try, the grip will tighten around you’). The end (‘sooner or later you’ll find your way back to the start’) is directly referencing Nolan’s Memento.”
It’s the latest taste of Pulling the Wool, out on Friday August 12th via Earth Libraries; tune in below:
