From the county of his childhood, nestled between old mariners' secret coves and the vast moors battered by wind and rain, James Hoare brings us his first solo album under the name Penny Arcade. Although he's left London to retreat to the country's western reaches, the English musician is no stranger to the scene. He's been roaming about as if awakening from a long, not-so-peaceful slumber, and you might recognize his washed-out blue eyes from his time with Veronica Falls, The Proper Ornaments, and Ultimate Painting. On this dreamy, hand-crafted record, created during a series of recording sessions tinged with mishaps—which, he admits with a grin, are quite common for him—Hoare took his time to assemble eleven intimate and solitary tracks.
Through multi-track sessions, often salvaged from failing magnetic tapes and driven by subtle drumbeats from acquaintances reluctantly imported from the capital, "Backwater Collage" follows the grand tradition of home recording, yet it retains meticulous production throughout. James Hoare carefully weaves pure and stripped-back melodies, blending his soft and melancholic voice with the warm and slightly hushed tones of Nathalia Bruno. The result is a soulful and introspective journey, where each track feels like a personal reflection, inviting listeners into a space that's as windswept and rain-soaked as the landscapes that inspired him.
