UK based duo Sons of Sevilla released “Street Light Moon,” an eclectic piece that paints the tripped out picture of a nighttime sky whose moon has been replaced by a burning street light, marking the second single and title track from their upcoming album produced by Grammy winning Adrian Quesada of Black Pumas. Brothers Henry and Reuben Smith blend studio craft with raw live demos on the track, including an unrepeatable moment of Henry using an old glass bottle as a slide on his guitar while at sea.
Recorded at Electric Deluxe Recorders, the Austin area studio and gear head’s paradise where Adrian Quesada’s Black Pumas cut their acclaimed records, the sessions were enriched with snippets from the brothers’ homemade demos whose raw, irreplaceable sound was too vital to be left out of the final recordings. Henry didn’t have a slide when they were on the boat so he had to use an old glass bottle, creating a twang thanks to the bumps on the bottle that they couldn’t replicate in the studio, so they kept it. The band draws from a world’s worth of influences including the family owned British pub where they grew up watching their parents sling drinks as songs by John Prine and J.J. Cale played over the speakers, the marina in Gibraltar where they spent three weeks aboard an old fishing trawler writing the album’s songs as waves splashed against the dock, and the recording studio in Austin where they worked with Quesada and a small group of instrumentalists.
Raised on the outskirts of Leeds, Henry and Reuben spent countless hours in their parents’ taproom as pre teens, getting a musical education through songs by Buena Vista Social Club, Bob Dylan, Terry Reid, Neil Young and Gene Clark. The summer months offered a different sort of education with the family leaving their hometown of Featherstone and heading to the Spanish city of Sevilla, which inspired the band’s name when they began recording their debut album. Their second studio album reintroduces Henry and Reuben as sharp songwriters and musical mood setters who’re every bit as compelling as their world renowned producer, with an expanded toolkit, a growing list of collaborators and a widened musical reach that finds Sons of Sevilla setting sail for new waters and landing at a sound entirely of the band’s making.