American-Swedish indie pop outfit I Am a Rocketship have announced that they will release their new album ‘Lies and Legends’ in November, ahead of which they present the lead track ‘Fever Dream’.
Based in Atlanta, I Am a Rocketship is a duo comprised of Eric Weissinger and L E Kippner, who mix smooth impressionistic lyrics and rock guitar with a dash of Dirty South beats and psychedelic bombast.
Both raised on folk and classical music, the two later discovered bands such as Joy Division, My Bloody Valentine, Massive Attack and Sigur Ros. Suckers for a pop hook, I Am a Rocketship is a self-contained duo, who write, record and create art and videos without the involvement of other contributors.
The new ‘Lies and Legends’ album is their most ambitious collection to date. These ten songs are about the appeal, in trying times, of lies and legends over reason and love. They give people hope, a feeliong of belonging, and frequently, a license to do terrible things in the name of their belief.
“When facts are scary, people turn to belief. I guess these are songs about failth, how it can be comforting, but blinding,” says guitarist and programmer Eric Weissinger.
All the music on the ‘Lies and Legends’ album was recorded on a notebook computer during early 2021 – a very productive year for the band given the amount of time spent under lockdown, with late 2020 also bringing their ‘oRAnGE’ EP, a release laced with frustration, sadness and rage over the rise of authoritarianism and accelerating environmental collapse.
Earlier, I Am a Rocketship released their ‘Ghost Stories’ LP (April 2020), ‘Mind Grafitti’ (2019) and debut offering ‘Mission Control’ (2016).
Eric Weissinger used to back up various artists, opening for bands such as The Wedding Present, The Black Crowes, James, Cracker and Portastatic. But everything changed thanks to a chance meeting with L E Kippner – cellist, scientist, radio DJ and singer for Swedish synth-pop duo Neobox. At first forming Hitchcock Blondes in Ohio, they relocated to Atlanta for a fresh start as I Am a Rocketship.
As of September 24, ‘Fever Dream’ will be available as an instant grat download on Bandcamp, where the full ‘Lies and Legends’ album can be pre-ordered directly from the artist. The album will be released on November 11 across digital platforms, including Spotify and Apple Music.
