Bay Area based band Great Apes are gearing up to release a new album, California Heart.The record was recorded over four days this past spring by Jack Shirley at The Atomic Garden. Asian Man Records is releasing the material on 12” LP and in digital format in October.
California Heart is the second full length and sixth release from San Francisco’s Great Apes. The record, akin to much of the band’s earlier material, is thematic. With California Heart, the concept is a fictional one, revolving around an alienated adolescent residing in Fresno, CA. Each song is written in first person and tackles a myriad of subjects including mental illness, suburban doldrums, creativity, nature as a sanctuary, social isolation, perceptions of adulthood, cliques, bullying, drugs, suicide, and an ever-crystallizing and often cynical view of the world. In its entirety, the record is intended to be a portrait of navigating coming of age as an outcast, in a stagnant and less-than-nurturing environment. Although the writing is founded in fiction, it’s undoubtedly inspired by personal experiences, and anyone who grew up feeling weird, anxious, down, and/or angst-ridden in a place they wanted out of should have no problem finding points of relation.
Live Show:
Saturday, September 17th This is my Fest – Oakland, CA @ Oakland Metro House