Nightlands’ Dave Hartley Announces Oak Island, Out Jan. 22 on Secretly Canadian; Listen to “So Far So Long” Now

The son of a genetic engineer, Dave Hartley has eschewed his father’s profession but decidedly inherited his analytical proclivities and love of “the lab.” As Nightlands, Hartley is a scientist trying to create and understand art through analytical process. Each distorted, silver-voiced melody is wrapped in the sounds of 70s AM gold – plucked acoustic guitars, trumpets, dulcimers and hand percussion. In using these pop touchstones, the songs become something close to memories, the faded feelings that tide in and out of you when conjuring the past. To this end, virtually every chord played on Oak Island is a major-7th, the most nostalgic harmonic grouping. Seals & Croft produced by mid-70s beetle-voiced Brian Eno. Crosby, HAL and Nash.

Hartley is the sideman to many notable bands in and around Philadelphia and the bassist of The War on Drugs (he played bass on Sharon Van Etten’s epic, in Sondre Lerche’s touring band, and sings in The Silver Ages). Listeners expecting a simple side project, however, will be surprised by the boldness and scope of his vision–Nightlands is the Chuck Close painting to the The War on Drugs’ De Kooning.

Nightlands tour dates:

Thu. Oct. 25 – Philadelphia, PA @ PhilaMOCA

Thu. Nov. 29 – Brooklyn, NY @ Glasslands

Tue. Dec. 4 – Philadelphia, PA @ PhilaMOCA (performing original score to “2001: A Space Odyssey”)

Oak Island track listing:

01. Time & Place

02. So Far So Long

03. You’re My Baby

04. Nico

05. So it Goes

06. Born to Love

07. I Fell In Love With a Feeling