{"title":"The Sophs","description":null,"products":[{"product_id":"sweat","title":"Sweat","description":"\u003cp\u003eRough Trade co-founders \u003cstrong\u003eGeoff Travis\u003c\/strong\u003e and \u003cstrong\u003eJeannette Lee\u003c\/strong\u003e are excited about the label's newest signing, LA six-piece The Sophs. The band's brutal honesty, flamingly intrusive thoughts, and broad genre-spreading caught their attention immediately.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eRough Trade heard the sort of creativity and variety — and don’t expect me to act pretty sentiment — that could get The Sophs — including frontman \u003cem\u003eEthan Ramon\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eSam Yuh\u003c\/em\u003e (keyboards), \u003cem\u003eAustin Parker Jones\u003c\/em\u003e (electric guitar), \u003cem\u003eSeth Smades\u003c\/em\u003e (acoustic guitar), \u003cem\u003eDevin Russ\u003c\/em\u003e (drums), and \u003cem\u003eCole Bobbitt\u003c\/em\u003e (bass) — a slot on nearly any stage.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\"It’s rare that a demo that arrives in the post sets your heart racing and sends you off on a quest to track down its sender. But that’s what happened when we listened to the music sent to us by \u003cem\u003eEthan Ramon\u003c\/em\u003e,\" \u003cstrong\u003eTravis\u003c\/strong\u003e and \u003cstrong\u003eLee\u003c\/strong\u003e explain.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\"As a band newly entering the public sphere, signing with Rough Trade felt like an act of symbiotic faith. They took as much of an interpersonal interest in us as we did in them. From late nights at the pub to earnest conversations about the real-life events that inspired our songs, Rough Trade has always been and continues to be a team of true music lovers - people we’re nothing short of honored to call our partners,\" says \u003cem\u003eRamon\u003c\/em\u003e of their signing to the esteemed indie label.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eRamon\u003c\/em\u003e further elaborates on ‘Sweat’, \"To me, the song feels like an attempt to overcompensate in the face of grief, one that fails miserably and ends with you being swallowed whole. I tried to capture the moment when the tension breaks and you realize you’re no longer in control of your emotions; your emotions are in control of you. That realization is humbling.\"\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Rough Trade Records","offers":[{"title":"7\" - Black","offer_id":51845639569739,"sku":"R8474-3962","price":0.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/SWEATCOVERART_FINALSMALL.jpg?v=1747689247"},{"product_id":"goldstar","title":"GOLDSTAR","description":"\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eLos Angeles six-piece The Sophs have ridden a wave of notoriety ever since signing to Rough Trade Records on the strength of their demos - which they cold-emailed to lableheads Geoff Travis and Jeannette Lee before they ever even played a show. Following last year’s releases of stand-alone singles  ‘I’m Your Fiend’, ‘Sweat’, and ‘Death in the Family’ and worldwide touring, the band are ready to unleash their debut album \u003cem\u003eGOLDSTAR\u003c\/em\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003eRough Trade heard the sort of creativity and variety — and “don’t expect me to act pretty” sentiment — that could get The Sophs — including Ramon, Sam Yuh (keyboards), Austin Parker Jones (electric guitar), Seth Smades (acoustic guitar), Devin Russ (drums), and Cole Bobbitt (bass) — a slot on nearly any stage. At any moment, The Sophs are entering pop-punk; blazing through funk; talk-singing to the audience. Their enthusiasm for every iteration is evident, and Ramon’s rich, full voice deftly nestles into endless categories, utterly chameleonic.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“We never try to be as versatile as we end up being,” Ramon said. \u003ci\u003eGOLDSTAR\u003c\/i\u003e has a Delta Blues-style song; it has a ZZ Top-inspired tune. To some degree, The Sophs see song creation like pop art: they’re focused on the idea of reproducing something over and over again until it's meaningless. “\u003ci\u003eI want to steal and plagiarize and borrow,\u003c\/i\u003e” Ramon explains.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003eM\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003eost of The Sophs’ songs don’t let the listener relax — mostly because you never know what’s coming next. The band has a passion for sudden and complete destruction, for playing with the tension between pulled-back silence and total explosion. That’s where you hear The Sophs members’ as they really are: explosively positive, happy, collaborative. Think of the “degenerative posturing” instead as a “jester’s privilege.” When they’re playing together in a room, you see nothing like the character they’re putting forward. Instead, you feel a bombastic, thrilling energy that underlies the sextet’s creative power.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Rough Trade Records","offers":[{"title":"LP - Transparent Red \/ Rough Trade Exclusive","offer_id":56284716597579,"sku":"R4175-6039","price":26.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"LP - Transparent Red","offer_id":56284716630347,"sku":"R4175-5675","price":26.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"LP - Black","offer_id":56284716663115,"sku":"R4175-7957","price":23.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD","offer_id":56284716695883,"sku":"R4175-8050","price":10.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/RT0562LP-The.Sophs-Goldstar-4000px.jpg?v=1768207007"}],"url":"https:\/\/shop.roughtrade.com\/de\/collections\/the-sophs.oembed","provider":"Rough Trade","version":"1.0","type":"link"}