Cardiff-based indie/Americana quartet TJ Roberts are pleased to share two new tracks taken from their second album, Love Loss & Other Useless Things, released 8th December 2020 via Rose Parade Recording Co.
Perfectly handcrafted, ‘Somebody’s Someone’ is a meta-take on ’80s atmospheric balladry, composed of muted rhythms and fluttering full-chord flourishes. Lifting the curtain on TJ Robert’s bodied understanding of space and dynamics, it signals further promise of experimentation to come from the hotly tipped act:
“Somebody’s Someone is a song about recognising the difficulty in being reliant on another and having them rely on you. It’s a tender message of attempting self-improvement that is haunted by the fear that change will result in isolation. Sonically it departs from the album, signalling the next step in the TJ Roberts sound towards expansive and enveloping production,” explains frontman Thomas J. Roberts.
Also included is B-side, ‘Big Time Chances’, a fan favourite from the recently released album in which the band presents a collage of experiences with the world of music management and record labels.
“The verse is sung from the perspective of an A&R, and the chorus from the artist, often bewildered at the events unfolding around them,” explains Thomas.
For those yet to meet his acquaintance, TJ Roberts is an artist soaked in transatlantic tradition. Consummate entertainers live, he and the band have a broad spread of classic influences, variously evoking the earworm melodies of Big Star, the midwest charm of Twin Peaks and Wilco, along with the beautiful drawl of the late, great David Berman.
Alongside bandmates Heather, Gavin, and Jasper, since 2018 frontman Tom (aka Thomas John Roberts) has set his sights on pushing their rock-infused ‘indie-cana’ to its limits, employing the talents of respected producer Tom Rees (Buzzard Buzzard Buzzard, Do Nothing, Panic Shack) at the controls to bring their latest album to fruition.
Building on support from the likes of God Is In The TV Zine, Buzz Magazine, Yuck Magazine, The Soundboard, Circuit Sweet, Bring The Noise, Maximum Volume, Let It Happen, and Music Blog Wales, the band released their second full-length album Love Loss & Other Useless Things, 8th December 2020 via their own label Rose Parade Recording Co.
Love, Loss & Other Useless Things is available to stream now through all good digital service providers.
