Premiere: George Alley Shares “Fake Sick” Single + Video
Watch Fake Sick HERE
Today, George Alley shares their newest single, “Fake Sick”. Alley will be releasing his self-titled debut album, *George Alley*, on September 27th. George Alley is a Philadelphia-based multimedia artist whose music has been the center of his work as a composer, performer, professor, journalist, podcaster, choreographer, and curator.
George Alley’s self-titled debut album news follows his announcement of a screening of the concert footage of his band on June 27th at 6:30 pm as the official LGBTQIA+ artist for Groundfloor Studios for Pride Month. This will also be a sneak preview of promotional videos for four of the singles from the upcoming album: ‘Fake Sick!’, ‘Wishlist’, ‘Summer Trophies’, and ‘King in Town.’ A planned string of live shows and DJ sets will follow in September. Tickets are HERE
Produced by Ian Romer with additional production from Frank Musarra, it also features musical contributions from Norma Alley (vocals), Eric Coyne (cello), Sasha Ki (violin, viola), Russel Kotchner (violin), Jack Reilly (drums), Alec Spiegelman (saxophone), and Branson Yeast (cello). To accompany this release, a five-song concert has been filmed and will be released along with three promotional music videos.
These grand post-punk pop new songs reaffirm Alley’s description of the follow-up to his more somber ballad “Just Leave Me Dreaming” as “a power record.” Upon announcing the album, he explained, “I was born being obsessed with all kinds of music from the Punk songs I write about as a journalist and professor, to the pop songs I grew up listening to while auditioning for the New Mickey Mouse Club, to the dance music I have been hearing in clubs from New York to Berlin. This is the album I’ve always wanted to make.”
FEATURED INTERVIEW:
What was your inspiration when you were writing “Fake Sick”?
The inspiration actually started with a line I wrote while I was enjoying a Guinness alone at Temple Bar in Dublin. I was listening to a band sing a love song and feeling quite content with myself at the same time, so the line ‘I’m self-involved enough to be proud of this empty heart’ went into my notes app. In my favorite songs, the narrator is often an anti-hero or has some clear personality flaws. I know I can be a difficult personality for some, particularly coupled friends who want everyone to settle down, and I kind of relish having that animosity with them. After I wrote the song on the synth (which you also hear), we transposed it to guitar voicing with Ian Romer (the producer of this song and its parent album), and then Jack Reilly added some aggressive drumming.
How did you come up with the music video concept for “Fake Sick”?
We used my best friend/ex-boyfriend/touring keyboard player Philip Moore’s empty house that he’s moving out of in Philadelphia. My frequent visual collaborator/director Adam Peditto and many of my other friends all have a lot of memories of wassail parties and watching music videos there. Plus, it’s a safe space to smash a bunch of beer bottles in! The video also features a collaged bathroom by Philip, full of music and dance events we’ve collaborated on over the years.
If you could collaborate with anyone, who would it be?
Brian Eno is my big hero. His ideas on composition and his production style are huge influences on me. I love using an element of chance in anything I do, whether that’s rolling the dice to decide how many times to repeat a word or using my deck of Oblique Strategies cards that Eno and Peter Schmidt created to promote creativity and chance in artists. I teach a college course on Theories of Creativity, and so I am obsessed with learning new methodologies that get people to create.
GEORGE ALLEY LINKS:
Website | Facebook | Soundcloud | Instagram | Youtube | Bandcamp
