Cold Beaches Release Evocative New Album 'Ambient Joy,' Led by Introspective Single 'Up and Down'
- Dave Bedford
- 1 day ago
- 2 min read
Photo Credit: Jessy Lewit
Parisian Indie-jazz band Cold Beaches, the brainchild of DC native Sophia Nadia, introduces their dreamy 11-track album ‘Ambient Joy’, with lead single ‘Up and Down’. Offering a glimpse into Nadia’s journey from the US to France, known for blending psychedelic, romantic and rock aspects to create a rich sonic tapestry.
Recorded in Rome at Forward Studios with producer Lucas Christoff and audio engineer Francesco Putorti, the album was brought to life by a hand-picked band: Paolo Garoute (drums), Simon Xie (bass), Tristan David (guitar), and Nadia herself on synths, piano, guitars, and vocals. Written over the last several years, the songs grapple with grief, depression, anxiety, heartbreak, and the illusions of love, often disguised in dreamy melodies and lush arrangements.
“Ambient Joy is about finding joy in the things that may not seem as exciting.” says Sophia Nadia, “As mundane as life can be you learn to be grateful for the monotony as opposed to life-altering events or trauma. It's about trying to find your way, alone or accompanied by those you love, in a world that seems full of endless possibilities all tragic and beautiful and silly and kind. It's in the acceptance of that grey area that one may find ambient joy.”
The album’s lead single, ‘Up and Down’, embodies Ambient Joy’s exploration of grief and delves into the profound sorrow of losing a close friend. Cold Beaches weave together clever recording techniques through a grand piano with raw vocals to create the sense of confusion and aching for when “You don’t realise someone has passed away so you keep searching for them until you get the news that they are gone.” Encapsulating the limbo before the finality of death, making ‘Up and Down’ a gorgeous yet painful addition to the album.
At its heart, ‘Ambient Joy’ is an embrace of contradiction: joy and despair, love and loss, fantasy and reality. From the whimsical bilingual opener of ‘Bound to You’ to its reflective closer ‘Could Be’, Cold Beaches have created an album that juxtaposes its lush indie-jazz soundscape with its often heavy lyrical content, outlining the duality of life.
From humble beginnings in a bedroom in Richmond, Virginia, since 2015 Cold Beaches have grown into a musical force to be reckoned with. They have played alongside notable artists such as Crumb, Slow Pulp, and Boyscott, and have been featured in publications such as When the Horn Blows and the Chicago Reader. With the release of ‘Ambient Joy’, their journey continues as they bring their distinctive jazz-tinged indie-pop sound to audiences worldwide.