Beloved Australian electronic act, Cut Copy return with their third single for 2020, “Like Breaking Glass,” out today via Cutters Records/The Orchard. The track is taken from the four-piece’s greatly anticipated sixth studio album, Freeze, Melt, to be released on Friday, August 21.
“Like Breaking Glass” summons the quintessential Cut Copy sound from the vault, with high-end sonics and a reverb-laced backbeat upping the mood, while Dan Whitford’s unmistakable vocals conduct a choir of assorted textures, unsuspecting at every turn. Rising and falling vectors tear through warm synth-work and dance-tingling beats, mimicking sentiments behind the physicality of deep love and a heartbreak’s violent rhythms through the body.
Dan Whitford says of the single: “In the beginning ‘Like Breaking Glass’ started out as a completely different track. Before one weekend I was mucking around in the studio with just a drum beat and an acid bassline. I never managed to finish it, but when I came back to it the next week there was something about that beat that felt compelling, so I started writing a song over the top of it. It is about the conflicted feelings of a relationship that has begun to unravel. Where sometimes against all logic, you discover that affections run deep just as a break up becomes inevitable. It was also one of my favourite songs working in the studio with the band when we crafted the middle section of the song comprising of weird delay effects, off-beat drum hits and metallic clangs where Mitchell was throwing a box of metal objects around the room, and we stood there recording him.”
Cut Copy’s forthcoming sixth album, Freeze, Melt, will feature “Like Breaking Glass” and the act’s previous two singles “Love Is All We Share” and “Cold Water,” as recently premiered on Double J. The body of work showcases an expansion yet refining in their sound over the past three years while maintaining a legacy unmatched in Australian music since their inception. Written during an especially cold European winter, the collection takes an evocative turn finding slowed meaning and influence from emotional manipulations that feed into their work but have never taken center stage, ultimately shaping a headier journey inward while lyrically exploring love in strange times. A treat for the mind, as well as the body.
Earlier this week, Cut Copy announced their first shows in support of Freeze, Melt to come in 2021. Traveling to Porto, Lisbon, Amsterdam, London and Dublin, European fans can now be among the first Cut Copy fans worldwide to catch the beloved act on stage in March/April 2021. Pre-sale is now open, with GA on sale from 7pm AEST this Friday, August 7.
After returning to Australia and being joined by his bandmates at Melbourne’s Park Orchard Studios to enhance and complete the recording, the record’s sense of place was further enhanced by the mixing contribution of Swedish legend Christoffer Berg (Robyn, The Knife), finishing the record in
Svenska Grammofonstudion in Gothenburg. The
Neve console they used was also used by Bowie/Eno/Visconti to make Lodger, and was also used by Queen, The Rolling Stones, Michael Jackson, AC/DC, Miles Davis, Aretha Franklin, Led Zeppelin, Stevie Wonder and Jonny Cash. The result of finalizing the record at Svenska Studios is a treat for the mind as well as the body.
Born from a bedroom recording project by Whitford and expanding to a full-fledged band with guitarist Tim Hoey, drummer Mitchell Scott, and bass player Ben Browning, Cut Copy’s output has stood the test of time. Their unique sound and unencumbered taste have earned praise locally and globally, performing on the likes of Late Night with Jimmy Fallon and Jimmy Kimmel Live, and picking up nominations for several awards. 2008’s In Ghost Colours, featuring “Lights & Music” and “Hearts on Fire” received nominations for the ARIA Awards’ Best Dance/Electronic Album and Album of the Year at the J Awards, while 2011’s ARIA chart-topper Zonoscope was nominated for Best Dance/Electronic Album at the Grammy Awards and awarded Best Dance Release at the ARIA Awards.
Their strength is also evidenced by their powerful live shows, which have graced the stages at Coachella, Primavera Sound, and countless other global marquee festivals. Their secret power – being able to convert crowds of thousands into a unified, joyous dancing whole. When you add over a thousand sold-out headline shows over five continents to the mix, you can just about begin to understand their appeal, instantly apparent the minute you step foot inside a Cut Copy concert.
Perfectly molding with recent singles “Love Is All We Share” and “Cold Water”, plus their respective club-ready remixes from the likes of Patrick Holland (aka Project Pablo) and Lindstrøm & Prins Thomas, today’s single breathes the quintessential Cut Copy sound. Brimming with vibrancy and the intricate production they know best, “Like Breaking Glass” lends another taste of a most highly-anticipated album to come in Freeze, Melt. Cut Copy fans, get ready.
