Gum Country is the project of The Courtneys singer, songwriter and guitarist Courtney Gavin and multi-instrumentalist Connor Mayer. Originating as a lo-fi project, the band’s first release was a self-titled EP recorded at home in a Vancouver apartment. Since then, Gavin and Mayer moved to LA, and teamed up with Joo Joo Ashworth to record their forthcoming debut album, Somewhere.
In anticipation, Gum Country have released two singles, starting with the opening title track. Serving as an introduction to what the pair describe as their “harsh twee” sound, the single combines analog and digital styles, utilizing the hazy textures of open-tune guitar alongside persistent drums and keyboard melodies. The result is something vivid and welcoming but with its own not insignificant edge, a style mirrored in Gavin’s writing, where sincerity and playful humour sit side by side.
Haven’t felt this way in a while
I can’t think straight can’t hide my smile
I guess this is gonna be my life for a while
For a whileI’ll walk around, I’ll walk around until I find
myself around here, myself around here somewhere
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Second single ‘Tennis (I Feel OK)’ has had something of a makeover since appearing on the debut EP, though its richer form retains the idiosyncrasy of the original. As the title suggests, this really is a track about tennis, more specifically “pretty much about how tennis just makes my life better,” as Gavin puts it. “My relationship with tennis is so meaningful to me on a spiritual level,” she goes on to describe. “The game makes you present, you’re repeating movements, and finding a rhythm. It’s my meditation practice.” It joins other songs on the record that focus on gaming and gardening, highlighting Gum Country’s uncanny ability to take the trivial details of life and weave songs that explore something bigger.
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Somewhere is out on the 19th June on vinyl via Kingfisher Bluez (Canada), cassette via Dinosaur City Records (Australia) and Burger Records (USA), and CD via Waterslide Records (Japan). Pre-order now via the Gum Country Bandcamp page.
