Please note this is a pre-order item due for release 13th June, 2025

Dinked Edition: DINKED #336

• Blue Moon transparent vinyl *
• Alternative outer & inner sleeve artwork *
• Signed Polaroid-style photo insert *
• Limited pressing of 400 *

*EXCLUSIVE to Dinked Edition

Tracklist:

1. Mission Creep
2. Lonely Town feat. Emma Anderson
3. High Teens
4. A Porsche Shaped Hole
5. Swiss Air feat. Emma Anderson
6. I Dont Know How To Sing
7. Messengers feat. Verity Susman
8. 1988
9. Motor Boats

The debut solo album from Ride bassist Steve Queralt is a beautifully brooding collection that combines the darkly textured soundscapes of early M83 or Sigur Rs with the post-punk of Joy Division and New Order, all with an electronic sheen reminiscent of Mark Pritchard or Boards Of Canada. It features guest vocals on several tracks from Sonic Cathedral labelmate Emma Anderson (formerly of Lush and Sing-Sing) and Verity Susman (Electrelane, MEMORIALS).

Swallow has been slowly but surely pieced together between Ride albums and tours over the past eight years and, perhaps as a result, has a slightly dystopian, almost Blade Runner feel that reflects the liminal spaces in which it was created.

Theres also an underlying anger and political slant. Despite the fact that the majority of the album is wordless, there is plenty of power and emotion, summed up by the few lines from Julie Sheldons poem The Same Boat that appear on the closing track Motor Boats (Were all in the same boat they say, but I would disagree). According to Steve, they capture the reality of our times perfectly.

There are also other words on the album courtesy of the two guest vocalists. There have been some amazing instrumental albums made over the last few years, especially in the nu-classical and post-rock worlds, says Steve, who points out the influence of Mogwai, and even titled one of the album tracks I Dont Know How To Sing, but some of the tracks sounded like songs to me, just without any words.

This led to the collaborations that, ultimately, tied the whole thing together and paved the way to the finished album.

One of the demos reminded me of Lush, who Ride had toured with in the 90s, so I contacted Emma thinking her voice would be perfect. But she was confused and said shed never sung lead vocals.
At the time I hadnt even decided I was going to sing on my own records, so I told Steve I couldnt do it, explains Emma. Then, a couple of years later, when I was singing on my own records and my debut album Pearlies was about to come out, I enquired about it, thinking he must have found someone else, but luckily he hadnt.

After a few false starts, I started to doubt the project altogether. It was going nowhere, says Steve. Then, out of the darkness, Emma got back in touch to tell me that shed found her voice and could I send her some tracks. A few files back and forth and an afternoon in the studio later and we had Lonely Town and Swiss Air.

In the meantime, Verity from Electrelane had added vocals to the song Messengers and transformed the track.

Matthew Simms, her then future bandmate in MEMORIALS, would go on to mix the finished album.

Swallow has turned out so much better than I had hoped, largely thanks to Emma and Veritys contributions which sew the tracks together and shape it into an album, enthuses Steve. Id fallen out of love with it so many times I was thinking of calling it Loveless. But then, that wouldnt be the whole story.

*Limited to 1 copy per customer/household, multiple orders will be cancelled without notice.