MILKY CHANCE

Before  it  can  burst  into  flame,  every  fire  needs  an  initial  spark.  For  Milky Chance, that flickering introduction came a little over three years ago when they  released  their  now  infamous  debut  track  “Stolen  Dance”.  After  its  re- lease,  Milky  Chance  ascended  to  the  coveted  number  one  spot  in  several countries, became the “most blogged about act” on the Hype Machine, and released the successful follow-up singles “Down By The River” and “Flashed Junk Mind” off of their self-produced album ‘Sadnecessary.’

As  a  result,  the  duo  left  their  small  hometown  for  multiple  tours  that  took them  across  several  continents,  to  the  fields  of  Glastonbury,  the  desert  of Coachella,  and  the  stage  of  Lollapalooza.  It’s  this  journey,  replete  with  the push and pull of emotion that comes from being uprooted that forms the ba- sis of their new album ‘Blossom’.

Comprised of childhood friends Clemens Rehbein and Philipp Dausch, Milky Chance emerged from Kassel, Germany. It’s an average sized town slap bang in the center of the country, the sort of place where everyone knows one an- other. But it’s also a breeding ground for creativity. “It feels easier to concen- trate on what you really want to do if you’re not distracted by big city life”, says Philipp.

When the pair finished school, they had plans to travel through Europe on a bus with their friends. The release of “Stolen Dance” and their debut album

‘Sadnecessary’ made this dream a reality, as Milky Chance spent the better part  of  350  days  taking  their  music  from  The  United  States  and  Europe  to South Africa and Australia. But therein lays the problem. “It was like we fin- ished with school, then we were thrown into a big industry”, says Clemens. “It was great. Every day was an adventure. But everyone who goes on that journey of adventure after school gets to return home.”

Home, and the feeling of being entrenched in the foundation of one place, isn’t just an important necessity - it’s a human need. And for Milky Chance, it’s  also  a  feeling  that’s  tied  up  in  a  multitude  of  emotion.  “As  an  artist  you fuel  a  lot  of  creativity  by  jumping  into  the  bus  and  going  somewhere  new, but  it’s  also  about  being  rooted  somewhere”,  says  Clemens.  Perhaps  even more pertinent though is this: in the years between the release of ‘Sadneces- sary’ and this new album, Clemens welcomed someone new into his life - his daughter.

“You  want  to  hold  it  all  together.  You  want  to  be  a  musician,  but  you  also want to be a good father”, he says. One specific track on the album, the title track, is about his “view changing in life” since his daughter was born. Ultimately, it is things like this that have fueled the conception of this latest col- lection of tracks. As the band themselves tell it, “it’s about the experience we had  in  the  last  two  years  and  the  two  different  worlds  we’ve  jumped  into: touring, then being home in our private life with family and friends and trying to keep the balance”.

The first single to rise from this period of reflection is “Cocoon”, a track that’s “about  being  in  a  certain  situation,  trying  to  work  with  it,  figure  out  what you’ve done and why you did so”. As its name and sound implies, the track also brings forth a palpable sense of returning to a place of serenity. Or in Clemens own words “trying to find a place where you can be yourself and not be distracted; to slow down and reflect on yourself”.

Across  the  rest  of  ‘Blossom’,  we’re  introduced  to  a  vigorous,  secure  Milky Chance. With that extended period of adventure and personal development now  built  into  their  roots,  there’s  a  renewed  sense  of  depth  to  the  band’s serenely alluring jams. It’s a sound that pops and bursts into life, but running through its bedrock is a sense of learning and reflection.

Like their previous album ‘Sadnecessary’, there’s no doubt that ‘Blossom’ will enter the ears of the music world with an unrelenting force - and their hearts. Ultimately though, this is a record that belongs to Milky Chance. If we think of music as a learning experience, something to help us make sense of our life,  then  this  is  a  record  that’s  helped  Milky  Chance  to  do  that.  It  is  a process, an experience, a chapter in life – and it’s all burnt onto one record that captures those feelings in detail.

WEBSITE

FACEBOOK

TWITTER

INSTAGRAM