{"title":"Constant Smiles","description":null,"products":[{"product_id":"paragons","title":"Paragons","description":"\u003cp\u003eTypically, a band’s big indie label debut doesn’t come 15 albums into its career, but with Constant Smiles’ \u003ci\u003eParagons\u003c\/i\u003e, here we are. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003ePrimary songwriter and sole “constant” member Ben Jones—who considers Constant Smiles a collective—sees its impressive output as a way to document the group’s evolution. Since its live debut as a noise duo on Ben’s home of Martha’s Vineyard in 2009, Constant Smiles has grown to include contributions from 50 other members, all of whom have personal connections to the group’s extended family. And while the collective has indulged an array of musical whims along the way - including Ben’s penchant for penning a new set’s worth of material for each live performance - Constant Smiles’ sound has tightened up considerably over their past couple of albums, in large part as a result of Ben’s working relationship with Mike Mackey, who has become his main creative partner. This increased focus manifests on \u003ci\u003eParagons\u003c\/i\u003e in the band’s most cohesive batch of songs to date, ranging from shimmering psych-pop excursions to bittersweet, piano and string-accented strummers, and an execution that feels like a massive step forward for the band. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThrough its recent forays into dream pop and shoegaze (Control) and synth-pop (John Waters), Constant Smiles has learned how to incorporate its experimental inclinations more fluidly into the mix. Artists like Yo La Tengo, and the more recent Rat Columns, are good touchstones for Constant Smiles’ musical approach - tethering to an indie-pop core while perennially mining genres, always finding new ways to intrigue listeners and pursue a unique vision.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eParagons\u003c\/i\u003e was produced and engineered by Ben Greenberg in the last two weeks of December 2020 at Gary’s Electric, with additional recording done by Ben Jones at his home studio, The Void, and his Aunt Leanne’s house. The album was mixed at Circular Ruin Studio and mastered by Josh Bonati. The band on Paragons consists of Jai Berger (who performed “Introduction”), Spike Currier (bass and synth), Matthew Addison (drums), Emma Conley (violin), Nicky Wetherell (cello), Adam Lipsky (piano), and Ben Greenberg (guitar and Mellotron).\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Sacred Bones Records","offers":[{"title":"Purple | LP","offer_id":50468584915275,"sku":"1133143","price":20.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"Black | LP","offer_id":50468584751435,"sku":"1133142","price":22.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD","offer_id":50468583113035,"sku":"1133141","price":12.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/1be00d2c-8434-44fb-806c-e85d1e7e08c8_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727349143"},{"product_id":"kenneth-anger","title":"Kenneth Anger","description":"\u003cp\u003eOver the last half decade, the music collective Constant Smiles has produced a prolific output of acclaimed music, culminating in this record \u003ci\u003eKenneth Anger,\u003c\/i\u003e masterfully brought to life by engineer Jonathan Schenke (Parquet Courts, Liars, Dougie Pool). The group is known most recently for their much-praised debut album for Sacred Bones records, \u003ci\u003eParagons,\u003c\/i\u003e an emotionally resonant offering of indie folk masterpieces that all confront the internal ways we process our struggles with intimacies, addiction and humanity - produced by Ben Greenberg.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eConstant Smiles’ primary singer \/ songwriter Ben Jones uses the creative process as a tool for working through a deeply transformative period in his life. The band’s indie folk music lays bare this internal process, but on \u003ci\u003eKenneth Anger\u003c\/i\u003e, the music shifts to synth pop and looks externally, examining creativity, community, ritual, and their place in the healing process. Ritual takes a primary role in the eponymous \u003ci\u003eKenneth Anger\u003c\/i\u003e. Not only is auteur \u003ci\u003eKenneth Anger\u003c\/i\u003e himself known for his sensorial depictions of ritual, Jones often used the films as a silent visual backdrop during his songwriting sessions, a ritual that grounded the creation of the album. And while the director's use of saturated color inspired the warm ‘80s synth style production, the director's trailblazing spirit of authenticity also pushed Jones through his most vulnerable expression to date.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eKenneth Anger\u003c\/i\u003e is a collage of inspirations all funneled through the depths of reckoning into a distinctly unique synth pop tableau. Album opener \"Finding Ways\" uses a spiraling bass line, shimmering guitars and soft repetitive mantra-style vocals to bring the listener under the album's spell. It leads into stand-out track \"In My Heart\", where haunting background vocals by guitarist Lena Fjortoft and the propulsive drums of Ryan Jewell help to craft an anthem you haven't heard until you have heard it with the volume up and the wind in your hair. The album's most overtly pop song \"Gold Like Water\" was written about the intense feelings of panic attacks, spirals and spin outs, but also about feeling grateful for the people in your life who can help pull you out. The soothing double vocal performance by Jones and Taia and the rich cello accompaniment by Nicky Wetherall, become their own medicine.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis illustrates one of the foundational accomplishments of the album: while the narrative undertones of the songs deal with fear and isolation and anxiety, the songs themselves were created through the healing process of ritual, and enriched with collaboration, community and trust. The resulting music produces a balm that can genuinely recalibrate the nervous system. The listener journeys through the depths of every track while being lifted and guided by the music’s transformative hypnotic power. Just as a Kenneth Anger film explores the underbelly of the unconscious through proto-ASMR visuals, \u003ci\u003eKenneth Anger \u003c\/i\u003ethe album conjures the underworld into a series of synth pop classics.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Sacred Bones Records","offers":[{"title":"Blue LP","offer_id":50511979348299,"sku":"2006465","price":24.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD","offer_id":50511978561867,"sku":"2006464","price":12.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/Constant_Smiles_-_Kenneth_Anger_-_SBR318_-_PACKSHOT_6673b89e_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727896613"},{"product_id":"moonflowers-1","title":"Moonflowers","description":"\u003cp\u003eMuch like the night-blooming flora the album takes its name from, Constant Smiles’ Felte debut \u003cem\u003eMoonflowers\u003c\/em\u003e is the product of slow, largely unseen patterns of growth. The New York- based band forged a path all their own on the way here, gradually growing from an amorphous collection of highly conceptual ideas into something easier to grasp, with every step of their unlikely route leading to \u003cem\u003eMoonflowers\u003c\/em\u003e, a subtle masterpiece of internally-born ambient pop.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eConstant Smiles was formed in 2009 by Ben Jones. He was joined by different collaborators in versions of the band that manifested as noisy soundscapes, scenic chamber pop, or icy coldwave-adjacent synth-pop, often released on opaquely- designed, ultra-limited albums named after favourite film directors. A move to New York and a few records on Sacred Bones resulted in more people becoming aware of the band, but Jones and friends remained in constant flux. The great unlocking of the Constant Smiles puzzlebox happened when the band solidified into a permanent core lineup when drummer\/vocalist Nora Knight joined Jones and longtime bassist Spike Currier in the end of 2022. Like the best moments of foundational albums by Talk Talk or Nick Drake, the lived-in majesty of Adrianne Lenker’s Songs\/Instrumentals or Jim O’Rourke’s excursions into chamber pop, Moonflowers reaches its dynamic swells naturally, almost subliminally. It’s a sound that past Constant Smiles releases hinted at but never fully achieved.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eMoonflowers\u003c\/em\u003e is the clearest possible view of something that took years to form, yet feels naturally like an introduction. The music is cared for but not belaboured, and this fits perfectly with songs about the feelings that happen before you have time to think. In this fully arrived form, Constant Smiles taps into something instinctive, an atmosphere of stillness with microscopic parts that never stop moving, and songs that are nearly transparent but still somehow heavier than a mountain.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e- Fred Thomas\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Felte","offers":[{"title":"LP - Jade Green | Rough Trade Exclusive","offer_id":53128704262475,"sku":"R8986-6514","price":27.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"LP - Milky Clear","offer_id":53162406347083,"sku":"R8986-7136","price":24.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/Unknown_a41b2674-22d2-4f90-bcd3-e4749681b837.jpg?v=1754548689"}],"url":"https:\/\/shop.roughtrade.com\/de\/collections\/constant-smiles.oembed","provider":"Rough Trade","version":"1.0","type":"link"}