New York, NY (Top40 Charts) "I'm hearing you say, 'not enough is OK.' Well, it's not...I'm with the Painted People," quips lead vocalist, Christian Dryden of NYC-based, THE RITUALISTS about standing with the free thinkers of the world. Frontman and songwriter Dryden is something of an anachronism - a multi-instrumentalist who relishes the performance aspects of a live show while also penning lyrics that call upon 19th Century Romance poetry and musical arrangements that exude cinematic, art-rock sensibilities.
Now, after a few years of paying their dues, finding their unique voices, and gaining traction in the NYC underground community, The Ritualists are announcing their debut full length album, PAINTED PEOPLE (out August 2nd via Out of Line Music), showcasing their unflinching combination of post-punk ethos, arena-ready choruses, and psychedelic freak-outs.
The album's first single, "Ice Flower," encapsulates this tension. The track finds its foundation in a repeated bass groove before bursting into a sea of expansive guitar lines. The chorus rips through the ethereal textures and frantic tones, as Dryden stretches his voice, navigating through the chaos with an impassioned, melodic hook.
A combination of dark, deep pocketed verses juxtaposed with big, flashy choruses is a key element to tracks like, "She's the Sun" and "Rattles." The former embraces the band's inner Sixties Love Child, but tempers the psychedelic introspection with a healthy dosage of dark aggression, while "Rattles" captures attention with Pat Bennett's hypnotic drum line and a methodical keyboard hook introduction.
The title track, "I'm With The Painted People," takes a more personal and even biographical approach. Dryden shares his experiences on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, "Being inspired by larger-than-life characters such as
David Bowie,
Simon Le Bon,
Bryan Ferry and Marc Bolan was a blessing and a curse. It was magical and transformative to imagine these people as your sort of musical soul mates, but also seemed to engender feelings of loneliness, as there didn't appear to be anyone else who shared this vision where I was... that is, until I started to frequent the venues and clubs of the Lower East Side." It was here that Dryden found some kindred spirits. And it was here that he found the comfort to fully realize and express his creative vision. "Every time we do that song in NYC, I dedicate it to my audience and I truly mean every word of it."
