Peach Pit - From 2 to 3
By the end of my first listen to ‘From 2 to 3’, it became clear that the band have crafted a soundscape that is uniquely theirs.
Having already released two wildly different albums, ‘Being So Normal’ (2017) and ‘All Of Your Friends’ (2020), I struggled to imagine what a third Peach Pit album would look like.
By the end of my first listen to ‘From 2 to 3’, it became clear that the band have crafted a soundscape that is uniquely theirs. Featuring what I can best describe as ‘tangible nostalgia’, this album feels more like them than ever. Its release is perfectly timed to the sun-tinged days ahead of us.
The Vancouver quartet is made up of Neil Smith (vocals, guitar), Chris Vanderkooy (guitar), Peter Wilson (bass) and Mikey Pascuzzi (drums), all of who met in high school.
Smith, speaking of the albums process of creation, said: “From 2 to 3 is an album we started writing just months before the world shut down, back to when it was easy to romanticise being shut in.”
Peach Pit have bottled this feeling of reflection that so many of us felt during 2020, through their trademark woozy vocals and soothing riffs.
‘Up Granville’ kicks the album off, which starts high-energy before descending into more of a melancholic feel. Laced with sunny instrumentals, Smith has said of the track’s meaning: “it’s about living alone for the first time in my life. Being stuck in my small studio apartment during Vancouver’s rainy winter and wallowing in the loneliness of it.”
Following with infectious melodies and fast-paced riffs, ‘Lips Like Yours’ and ‘Pepsi on the House’ mean you’re never left wallowing for long. Fused with surf-rock, they’re set to be crowd-pleasers as we approach festival season.
‘Look Out!’ provides a turning point in the LP, shifting the energy to an acoustic, campfire feel. Peach Pit have an ability to match the emotions of the listener: without ever being too explicit in their meaning they allow us to attach our own memories to their music.
‘Give Up Baby Go’ and ‘2015’ are my two favourites from the album. A Peach-Pit album wouldn’t be a Peach-Pit album without a sad party song, and that’s exactly what ‘Give Up Baby Go’ encapsulates, a continuation of Tommy’s party and Brian’s Movie on their previous albums. Smith describes it as “the country version of ‘Party Rock Anthem’, except it’s about how getting blackout drunk was ruining my life”.
‘2015’ is a beautiful love song. The lyrics “without you there'd be no colour // they’d be no sound” seem fitting for such a vibrant album that paints rich imagery throughout. The album cover, too, depicts the four band members moving from a dark space into a light doorway: a perfect metaphor for their maturity in sound, as well as a crack of hope for the world post-lockdown.
Title track ‘From 2 to 3’ is perfectly placed. With a sleepy heaviness and hazy feel, it brings the album to a lulling close. Its surrealism and opening guitar feel reminiscent of the early Beatles, reflecting on that all-too-familiar feeling of being awake in the early hours.
The album feels familiar and comforting, something which has clearly come from years of playing together. While Peach Pit may not start any revolutions with their album that primarily focuses on love and heartbreak, they have certainly perfected their corner of the indie-scene and that is something beautiful to see.
Peach Pit are currently on their European tour, which ends June 2nd.
