Guitar music’s best worst kept secret returns to the UK and Ireland this spring including a date at Manchester’s Gorilla, as The Backseat Lovers set foot on European soil once more to meet heavy demand across ten live dates.
Before opening proceedings at the start of May with their first show in Glasgow, the Salt Lake City four-piece direct fans to the chill sundowner of reworked single, Maple Syrup, coolly performed in low-key form on board a swaying sailing boat.
When it comes to streaming success, The Backseat Lovers have hit stratospheric heights. The band, formed around the nucleus of songwriters, Joshua Harmon and Jonas Swanson found out just how far the world of self-releasing can take a band when early single, Maple Syrup, was loudly sung back at them on what they expected to be a quiet debut show in Vancouver. Their story is still gathering pace and is one of DIY ethics and quiet self-belief, winning them fans in both Jack White and fellow Utah indie heroes, The Killers, alongside knowing, ear-to-the-ground listeners across the UK, Ireland and beyond.
Harmon’s influences land in the zone of classic, straight-talking Americana of Willie Nelson and Johnny Cash, while Swanson’s indie sensibilities, lauding Weezer and Radiohead amongst others, means that the cut-and-paste of The Backseat Lovers sound reaches the highest standards of musical nutrition for the hips, heart and head. For the thousands of fans to have seen their rise, from a sold out, first ever 48-date US Tour to their celebratory Lollapalooza debut last year, the band hits every point of pleasure.
Sunday 8 May: Manchester, Gorilla
