Hey-O! The Chelsea Curve embrace the good stuff on ‘Top It Up’
The Boston mod-pop trio raise a glass to the good life and release the eighth and final Singles Scene single on Wednesday, October 27
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The Chelsea Curve’s debut album set for Winter 2022 release via Red On Red Records
LISTEN: THE SINGLES SCENE, TRACKS 1 TO 8, VIA BANDCAMP
Photo credit: John Keegan/Linda Pardee
READ: THE CHELSEA CURVE & RED ON RED RECORDS TALK SINGLES SCENE
BOSTON, MA [October 27, 2021] -- The Chelsea Curve have a lot to celebrate. And now they have the pub-rockin’ rave-up to prove it.
The Boston mod-pop trio are set to release new single “Top It Up” on Wednesday, October 27 via Red On Red Records. It’s the eighth and final single from The Singles Scene series, which saw the band deliver one new song every month since March, a year-long lead-up to the release of their highly-anticipated debut album in early 2022. But first, The Chelsea Curve take a moment to raise a glass to the good life.
“This one is about hitting the pause button on everything while doubling up on the good stuff,” says vocalist and bassist Linda Pardee. “And giving yourself permission to take a break and enjoy the good stuff, however mundane it might seem. Truth be told, when the pandemic restrictions started, I welcomed the break. As bummed as I was about having to cancel upcoming shows, rehearsals, outings, travel plans, everything, I rather liked staying home, quality hang time with our dog, baking soft pretzels, sippin’, and writing songs. But even all that good stuff gets old after a while; that’s why the last line of the song was changed from ‘I’m going home’ to ‘NOT going home!’ The frantic fast pace of the song reflects the craziness before the break!”
Dubbed “a scorcher” by drummer Ron Belanger, “Top It Up” also finds The Chelsea Curve hitting a gear that’s entirely their own. The punchy track was initially born as a mid-temp jangler with a ‘60s Motown and Martha & The Vandellas vibe already built in, perfect for the band to refuel and reload through their stylish songwriting lens of garage rock, British Invasion, and mod-pop. It’s a track that could bring the pubs together across Chelseas around the world, from the Massachusetts city to the London neighborhood.
“When we really got down to writing, Chelsea Curve-style, we liked it better as a pub-rockin’ rave-up and ran with it,” says guitarist Tim Gillis. “It feels like it’s right in our sweet spot -- retro feel, with a little edge. We wanted it to be a fun number that sticks in your head when you leave the club. We’re hoping to hear some ‘Hey-O’s!’ out in the street after the show.”
Adds Pardee: “We hopped it up, adding a little keyboard in there, a driving beat, some girl-group backup vocals, a fun singalong ‘Hey-O, Hey-O’ part and a Buzzcocks-ish guitar solo. I think this song hits a lot of our fave elements and represents us well in 2021!”
Also well represented in 2021 was The Chelsea Curve’s monthly Singles Scene series, which began back in March with “Girl Cavedog” and wraps this month with the release of “Top It Up.” The eight tracks released this year as singles will be paired with a handful of new tunes to compose the band’s debut record, due out this winter through Red On Red.
“I feel accomplished and happy,” says Pardee. “Maybe just a little sad that we won’t have that month-to-month adrenalin rush of a new song. Highlights for me have been playing these songs out live in front of people -- and -- being embraced by stations across the world, especially the UK!”
Gillis says the band is “pretty proud about all of it,” but assures that The Chelsea Curve “still have some aces up our sleeve. The singles will be there, but it will have a fair amount of new material, too. All will be re-swizzled into a refreshingly different mod-pop cocktail.”
Cocktails, pints, and other libations both literal and figurative will be on the menu to close out the year, as The Chelsea Curve are set to put an exclamation point on 2021 with a run of residency shows to celebrate the new music and the album ahead. It’ll be a good way to hear The Singles Scene songs in a live setting, and thank all the listeners -- as well as radio DJs, music writers, playlist curators, and show-goers -- who stayed the course with the band over the eight-song rollout. “It’s always fun to play songs that people have heard on their Spotify playlists, or heard on the radio,” says Belanger.
Details of the residency shows are to be announced, but let’s just say the holiday spirit of giving and The Chelsea Curve go hand-in-hand.
“We are looking forward to celebrating with you at our special end of year shows!” says Pardee. “Although The Singles Scene releases are over, the party is just getting started. We are planning to bring The Singles Scene to life with an end-of-the-year residency at a small club with great guest bands, special DJs, early cocktail hour start time and a proper hang that will take us from Thanksgiving into the New Year! Stay tuned for details to come!”
In the meantime, The Chelsea Curve close out The Singles Scene with “Top It Up” on October 27. Hey-O! Hey-O!
Please direct all press inquiries to The Chelsea Curve at thechelseacurve@gmail.com or Michael Marotta at michael@publisist.co.
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The Chelsea Curve are:
Linda Pardee - Bass and vocals
Tim Gillis - Guitar and vocals
Ron Belanger - Drums
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The Chelsea Curve short bio:
The Chelsea Curve have always been your favorite band, providing the constant song playing in your head as scenes, styles, and sounds change around you. With a sonic template rooted in retro mod-pop but with enough snarl to roll with the punks and whipsmart hooks to hang with the rock and roll crowd, the Boston trio have in 2021 unleashed The Singles Scene, a string of monthly releases featuring ultra-melodic earworms off their forthcoming debut album, set for winter 2022 release via red-hot indie label Red On Red Records. Everyone who listens to The Chelsea Curve connects the band’s influence to their own personal favorites of yesterday, but with seven Singles Scene tracks released so far this year, and global radio play amplifying their presence louder with each offering, The Chelsea Curve are quickly forging their own rock and roll path connecting the past to the present.
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‘Top It Up’ single artwork:
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The music of The Chelsea Curve has been heard on:
USA: The Rodney Bingenheimer Show on SiriusXM, Boston Emissions with Anngelle Wood, The Rodent Hour on Radio Free Brooklyn, WZBC’s Fuzzed Out, Bay State Rock, BumbleBee Radio, Rising with Skybar and Strike The Box on WMFO Tufts Radio, Music Authority, FONR, Hanks Alternative Radio, WITR, KZUU, Chasing The Essential, iROCK Radio, Krux FM, GarageRocktopia, Aggie Radio, New Visions Radio Network, Woody Radio, Lucky Star, DM Pulse, WORT, WMPG, KTAL, Rock And Roll Radio, Power Pop Shop Chicago, Red Red Wine on a Sunday.
United Kingdom: Somer Valley, Radio Skye, EN5, Howfen Radio, UK Independent, CDNX, Camglen Radio, IPO Radio, Pop Radio UK, Radio Wey, Belter Radio, Radio VGR, Oban (Scotland), KOR Radio, Merseyland, KCC Live, Limehead Radio, Military Veterans Network, Perfumed Allotment, IC Radio, Redwall, LSR Leeds, Future Radio, EDA Scotland, Dandelion, Cambridge, Castledown, Radio Warfare, Steve Garnett’s New Music Radio, The Menace’s House of Music.
Around The World: Banks Radio Australia, Base FM (New Zealand), Lux Radio (Brazil), Radio Sotra (Norway), Radio Jade (Germany), Flatlines Radio (Germany), Valley 89.5 FM (Australia), Dublin City FM (Dublin), Narradio 95.3 (Sweden), QCIndie (Canada), Mike Rogers Show (Japan), FM4 (Germany), Radio Pepito (Mexico), Island 92 (Phillipsburg, Saint Maarten), Radio Ara (Lux), Only Rock Radio (Spain), Queens of Noize (Australia), Voix de Garage (France), Plastico Elastico (Spain), Shakin’ Street (Dublin), Fun Rock Radio (Norway).
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Media praise for The Chelsea Curve:
"The song [‘Inconceivable’] is a dazzling, mesmerizing track ... and they really have a sound that pays homage to the past, while also embracing the musical possibilities of the future." _Music Box Pete
"Are the gal and guys of the Chelsea Curve really releasing a new single every month? Man, I hate overachievers, mainly because I'm jealous of, y'know, ambition. I forgive 'em quickly because each of these singles has been pretty damned swell, which is why we play them all on the radio.” _Boppin’ Like The Hip Folks Do (Carl Cafarelli)
"[The Chelsea Curve] might just be my fave new group." _Whole Lotta Shakin's Mike Murray
“The Boston trio just released ‘A Better Way,’ and it's virtually perfect… a jangly as hell pop punk/garage rock jam. It's a bouncy song dripping with punk attitude despite being filled with pop hooks.” _If It’s Too Loud
"'Drag' is something special. When that chorus hits, it's absolute magic... If catchy mod-pop with tons of smarts, big hooks, and amazing vocals sounds appealing to you, all of these Chelsea Curve singles are essential downloads." _Faster and Louder
“[The Chelsea Curve] excel both in the more classic melodic punk style ...and in their more quirky material, like the ditty they wrote explaining how to decode the weather beacon atop the old John Hancock building in Boston.” _Rock And Reel
“‘A Better Way’ is a jangly, Jam-like affair. Like the others it sounds like maybe it was a hit before and you just can't recognize it. Singer Linda Bean Pardee has another stellar vocal performance. There's a little Chrissie Hynde in it. The way the song is written allows her to wrap the words around the melody and give them a twist that your ear just loves.” _Boston Groupie News
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The Chelsea Curve press photo:
Photo credit: Reuben
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