Photo credit: Mallory Turner
Los Angeles-based band Swerve is pleased to present their new single,
“Escape” the first track to be lifted from the band’s debut album due in early 2021. The offical video for the track, which was directed by
Maddie Liner, premeired today at
PopMatters and the video can also be shared via
YouTube. On the song, PopMatters says, “There are hints of
Radiohead and
Teenage Fanclub lurking in the wings. But Swerve are more than a collage of influences, landing on something that is unique to this time and this band.”
About the song the band says:
“Escape”, our first single off our debut album, is both a ripping and dreamy song about leaving all the chaos and frustrations of life behind and heading off on an adventure with someone you love. While recording, we jokingly dubbed it “Anarchy In The Fields Forever” because we used “Anarchy In The UK” by the Sex Pistols and “Strawberry Fields Forever” by the Beatles as our primary sonic references for the guitars and found the contrasts in those tones to really go well together. The video was directed by our friend Maddie Liner using both original and found footage, and the main character takes inspiration from the band and the song to escape Los Angeles with her own cowboy on a vintage motorcycle.
Swerve is a Los Angeles rock band led by Gregory Mahdesian (vocals and guitar) and Ryan Berti (guitar and vocals), featuring Brandon Duncan (bass and vocals) and Mark Gardner (drums). Their music is gleefully inspired by nearly every era of rock history to create a unique sound that could only exist in the here and now. Taking their cues from punk, psychedelia, British Invasion guitar pop and modern indie, Swerve sits comfortably alongside contemporaries like
Queens of the Stone Age, Ty Segall and
Car Seat Headrest as well as classic artists like
Blur and
Oasis. They craft songs that grab you fast with larger than life choruses filled with hooks that stay with you.
Swerve’s first two self-produced EPs experienced success on college and specialty radio, landing in the top 10 of both the SubModern singles and albums charts and notably entering rotation on the legendary Rodney Bingenheimer’s show Rodney on the Roq. They performed to sell-out crowds at the Troubadour and toured in support of their EP Dumb Romeo.
In 2019 and 2020 they paired up with producer Adam Lasus (Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Yo La Tengo, Army Navy) instantly bonding over a shared love of bands like Teenage Fanclub, The Clash and the Replacements. Together they crafted their debut full length album, pushing their sound and challenging themselves. Creating this record while soldiering through personal developments, constant political engagement and, of course, quarantine, they are now hitting new levels of excitement with songs ranging from fierce to ethereal, all inspired by navigating through life as the world seems to be crumbling.
