CATALOG: DAP078
RELEASE DATE: 10/4/2024
Like their debut, Got A Story To Tell was recorded and produced by Gabriel Roth at Penrose Recorders, Daptone’s studio in Riverside, CA. Written in the throes of supporting their 2022 album - which was met with tremendous excitement and major touring that brought them across the world - it represents a crucible for the band. It led to a demanding and intense period, but they came out stronger and more together on the other side. They tapped into the explosion of creativity that came with it to make their best songs yet.
Got A Story To Tell was written by founding members Alejandro Garcia, Salvador Samano and Josh Lane. Garcia (drums, guitar), Samano (bass, drums) and Lane (vocals) recorded the album, with additional horn, string, percussion, organ players and background vocalists. Special guests include Larry Rendon on saxophone, an original member of Thee Midniters, the East LA band from the ‘60s that made history as one of the first Chicano bands to have a major hit in the U.S. (and in part what inspired Thee Sacred Souls’ band name). The live band features Garcia, Samano and Lane, as well as Riley Dunn on keys, Shay Stulz on guitar, and Astyn Turrentine and Viane Escobar on background vocals.
What swirls together on Got A Story To Tell is an appreciation of decades of soul music, and beyond - a sound and feel that is timeless, lived in, and very much in the now. Songs that take their time and relish in the moment. Album opener “Lucid Girl” champions independent women, set to some of the toughest sounding drums and bass the band has yet to put to tape. The song started with an idea from Garcia; it came to him on a Christmas morning of quiet solitude and heartache. “She chose herself and then she grew,” Lane sings in his pure tenor before the drums and Samano’s bass hit a stutter-step and the chorus kicks in. The album is full of characters and stories, and “Lucid Girl” sets the stage.
“Waiting On The Right Time” slinks with a touch of slow-burning psychedelia. A plea for empathy punctuates “One and the Same,” with Lane singing: “We’re one and the same, I feel one day / We learn to live with each other / In love, not fear / Just for a moment, why can’t we be together.” “On My Mind” is a sweeping orchestration, with Lane navigating the complexities of finding happiness while balancing the good with the bad. The album is punctuated with strings and squelching guitar, trundling piano, pops of conga, horns - it makes for a thrilling, layered listen that rewards with multiple spins.
Thee Sacred Souls began when Garcia and Samano, just 23 at the time, started the framework of the band by writing songs together. Lane joined as the vocalist and songwriter, moving to SoCal from Sacramento, and they were offered a record deal by Daptone after their soon-to-be producer Gabriel Roth saw one of their early gigs. Their debut - described by Uncut as “music of terrifyingly high quality” - earned them performances on NPR’s Tiny Desk, which debuted in February of this year, as well as several TV show appearances: Jimmy Kimmel Live!, CBS Saturday, Kelly Clarkson, Jools Holland, and The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. They have six million monthly listeners on Spotify, over 250 million streams on the platform so far, and “Can I Call You Rose” has been the soundtrack to nearly a million posts between TikTok and Instagram, a virality that took off in January of this year. An ever-growing list of fans includes SZA, Alicia Keys, Leon Bridges, and Kylie Jenner. For a band that just began significant touring in 2022, they’ve already made their festival debuts at Bonnaroo, Newport Folk, Austin City Limits and Lollapalooza, and sold out Brooklyn Steel in January of 2023 - just their third proper NYC headlining show ever.