“The Joy Formidable are back with their first new single since 2018’s AAARTH, and it finds their dreamy, grungy sound in fine form.” – Brooklyn Vegan on “Into The Blue”
“’Into The Blue’ is a gazing trip through uncharted territory, reflecting an imbalanced world in disarray, and the awakening of looking inward and finding self-acceptance with Bryan bellowing You see me for what I am / I don’t have to guess any more.” – American Songwriter
“Written in North Wales, the track sees bandleader Ritzy Bryan and co weave a selection of tastefully dialed clean electric guitar lines through its epic arrangement.” – Guitar World on “Into The Blue”
The Joy Formidable is pleased to share their new single
“Chimes” the latest pre-release single from their album
Into The Blue out August 20 (
pre-order). The 11 song album will be available digitally and on limited edition colored vinyl via
Enci Records in North America, Full Time Hobby in Europe and Soundly Distro in the rest of the world. “Chimes” was written after The Joy Formidable’s Ritzy Bryan went through a difficult breakup. The song was partly inspired by the sounds of her grandfather’s windchimes which helped her let go of the past and focus on moving forward.
On the song Ritzy says:
I was going through a difficult breakup that left me feeling quite lost & questioning myself. In the middle of that sadness, I had a whole week of strange little serendipitous events that ended up inspiring the lyrics for Chimes. I felt like something or someone was looking out for me. Little signs and symbols that makes you feel like there’s a lot that we don’t understand about our connectivity, the earth talking back to you. The wind chimes that my grandfather made (he passed in 2013) , they hang at my house here in Utah, they’ve come all the way from Manchester, UK to the SW desert. They would ring even without a breeze. I imagined that he was rooting for me to move forward, to trust in things again and that the love you put out will eventually come back to you.
The release of “Chimes” follows up the album’s singles “Back To Nothing” and the album’s critically acclaimed title track. The song was praised by American Songwriter, Brooklyn Vegan, NME, NPR New Music Friday Playlisting, Under The Radar and received support at commercial and non-commercial radio including SiriusXM, NPR stations and BBC 2 in the UK.
Last month the band shared the official video for “Back To Nothing.” The video debuted at
American Songwriter and can also be shared at
YouTube. The song reflects on where you’ve been and how grief can heal and illuminate the future. Lead singer and guitarist Ritzy Bryan says, “‘Back To Nothing’ takes a stance on self-compassion, realizing your worth & your boundaries and deciding not to give your love to an undeserving other.”
The haunting video was created by Ritzy & Rhydian in Southern Utah & described as a “beautiful challenge.” Ritzy tells American Songwriter, “We’ve always enjoyed making our own visuals, this was a bit more ambitious in the way of getting to the location & tasking ourselves with editing huge 360 files. I’ve learnt a lot about keyframing in a very short amount of time,” she laughs.
Filmed from night to dawn in one of the band’s secret hidey holes in Southern Utah. Ritzy adds, “We wanted to make a video that was alive with nature & imprints of the past but also plays with perspective. To be able to zoom out & change your view of the world & your own reality. It’s a humbling tool that can push you to treat yourself & the people around you a little bit better.”
Into The Blue Vinyl Variants and Bundles
