“We never really stopped after we completed that record,” says Tidelands vocalist, guitarist and flugelhorn player Gabriel Leis. “We were booking three-day sessions six weeks apart all throughout the summer and fall of 2011.” The key word to describe We’ve Got A Map is spontaneity,” says Leis’s bandmate, drummer Mie Araki. “Much of our current songwriting style is based on this word.”
Leis also notes the new sound of We’ve Got A Map as compared to the band’s previous album, owing this to his ongoing deliberate effort to create a more uplifting listen and to get away from the heaviness and headiness of his natural writing style. “We had moments of that kind of celebratory joyousness on If..., but this time around I wanted the overall feel of the record to reflect this attitude,” he explains.
As they had on If..., Leis and Araki once again collaborated with the Magik*Magik Orchestra on We’ve Got A Map. “We had such a successful collaboration with Minna Choi and the Magik*Magik Orchestra the last time, we decided to not only work together again, but to invite Minna to produce one of the tracks,” Leis says.
The latest Tidelands album We’ve Got A Map will be released on August 7th. Tidelands will embark on a tour in support of the album this summer.