Ferris & Sylvester’s upcoming third album, ‘It’s A Joy To Be Alive’, looks set to be their strongest and most vulnerable collection to date when it is released on August 14th via their own Archtop Records label. That feeling is underlined as they share the album’s latest single‘Jealous’.
‘Jealous’ is an expression of a feeling that we never quite seem to be able to permanently shake, regardless of how much we realise it’s both immature and self-defeating – as they say, comparison is the thief of joy. Yet shaped into a sound that drips with organic country-rock warmth and pop sensibilities, that complicated emotion switches to become a sweetly uplifting listen. As we’ve come to expect, the married couple excel with their trademark tight vocal harmonies, Issy Ferris’s majestic lead supported by Archie Sylvester’s backing.
Archie Sylvester says, “In its original form, ‘Jealous’ was conjured up by Issy when she was 17, about the cool kids at school. Over ten years later, we realised it still had deep meaning in our lives as adults. We had to work on it. It’s exciting to face the ‘uglier’ parts of ourselves in our writing. So much strength can come from it. This is for the kids, teens, adults, elderly folk, any human being who has felt inadequate standing next to someone else. It’s time we embraced it.”
The singles that have come ahead of ‘It’s A Joy To Be Alive’ showcase a fresh spark in Ferris & Sylvester’s creativity. They’ve always melded a vast tapestry of styles – blues, folk, rock, psychedelia and more – but now they’re going broader still while finding a tighter cohesion to their genre-hopping adventures. Thematically, it’s largely inspired by facing up to and battling through their personal struggles – especially the premature birth of their son – making for a heartfelt record that can inspire hope in others.
Having met in a blues bar in London ten years ago, Ferris & Sylvester have since married, become proud parents of two children, and are now making a new life for themselves outside of the capital by building a new studio / label hub in the West Country.
As musicians, they have toured the world playing festivals from Glastonbury to SXSW, selling-out countless headline shows, and sharing stages with their heroes such as Robert Plant. They have achieved great things with their two previous albums, ‘Superhuman’ and ‘Otherness’, including a #1 on the UK’s Official Jazz & Blues Albums Chart, Album of the Year at the Americana UK Awards, and support from Rolling Stone, BBC Introducing, Classic Rock, Clash and Wonderland. They’re giving something back too, raising money and awareness for the invaluable research and support provided by the pregnancy and baby charity Tommy’s, as well as being patrons of The Music Venue Trust.
‘It’s A Joy To Be Alive’ is available to pre-order HERE. It will be released on pink vinyl with a signed insert and a signed CD. Album bundle offers also include new merch items.