Gates have premiered A stream of the second single Empty Canvas from Gates upcoming album, Parallel Lives.

Living in New York City, Gates’ Kevin Dye began to look at the world differently. It’s that inspiration that birthed Parallel Lives. Co-produced by Dye and Mike Watts (The Dear Hunter, As Tall As Lions), the album features the band experimenting with different instruments as they reach new sounds.

“Trying to absorb and deal with how you can’t know everyone, and you won’t ever know how they affect your lives or how you’re affecting others with simple things you’re saying or doing. I tried to hone in on that and use these songs to get that point across.”

The album mirrors life’s series of altering paths: songs reference each other in lyrics and style, but sound wildly different from one moment to the next. Without Dye always playing guitar, songs like the ethereal “Empty Canvas” and the Patty-Griffin-inspired piano song “Fade” are the epitome of Gates’ blend of core lyrical songwriting and atmospheric heaviness. The songs were tirelessly revised: “Penny” began as a Pedro the Lion-esque ditty before becoming a faster, more upbeat number, and the beginning of “Habit” changed entirely.

“I’ve never felt so much joy and satisfaction as when the five of us came together for this.”

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.