Piroshka (Photo courtesy Bella Union)
Today Bella Union are thrilled to announce the release of Piroshka’s stunning second album, Love Drips and Gathers, that is due out on July 23. The album builds on the acclaim of the band’s 2018 debut LP Brickbat and the reputations of the former members of Lush, Moose, Elastica, and Modern English.
To celebrate the release, Piroshka have shared a video for lead track “Scratching at the Lid” directed by Connor Kinsey / Home Picture Films.
Piroshka emerged in 2018, four individuals with distinct musical identities but also overlapping histories, a combination that might have unsettled or even overwhelmed some bands. But in their case, the bond only got stronger. After Brickbat explored social and political divisions by way of what MOJO described as “Forceful, driving garage songs and dream-pop epics”, Love Drips And Gathers follows a more introspective line, the ties that bind us, as lovers, parents, children, friends, to a suitably subtler, more ethereal sound, while still reveling in energy and drama.
“If Brickbat was our Britpop album, then Love Drips And Gathers is shoegaze!” said vocalist/guitarist Miki Berenyi, formerly of Lush, a band that effortlessly bridged the two genres like no other. “It wasn’t intentional; we just wanted a different focus. I’ve always seen debut albums as capturing a band’s first moments, when you really have momentum, and then the second album is the chance for a more thoughtful approach.”
Bassist Mick Conroy (Modern English) agreed: “Brickbat was a classic first album; noisy and raucous. On Love Drips And Gathers, we’ve calmed down and explored sounds, and space.”
Watch the official music video for “Scratching at the Lid” by Piroshka on YouTube:
To recap, before Miki and KJ “Moose” McKillop were a couple (and parents), they were pivotal figures on the London-centric ’90s indie scene. Likewise, Elastica, whose drummer Justin Welch was part of Lush’s 2017 reunion, and Mick had played for both Moose and, on their last ever gig, Lush.
As Lush Mark II came to an end, Justin persuaded Miki (who’d abandoned music when Lush first split in 1997) to start another band, Piroshka, which in turn reignited Moose’s own long-dormant ambitions. While Justin and Miki were the dominant influence on Brickbat, this time Moose and Mick were given greater control over the production, with invaluable assistance from Bella Union’s in-house engineer Iggy.