Bristol’s Snails return in exuberant form on their second full-length album, ‘Hard-wired’. Recommended to the label by Stephen Pastel and he knows a good ‘un when he hears one. Over 10 songs that unfold with an origami-like precision and attention to detail, the west country 6-piece expand their lush, outsider-pop template into new sonic and emotional territory, alchemising existential doubt into condensed elegies of often breathtaking beauty. From opener “It doesn’t have to be true”, Hard-wired envelops the listener in a comforting intimacy of sound and vocal harmony, overflowing with a subtlety of lyricism and generosity of spirit that led Pete Paphides to praise their debut Safe in Silence as “simply the most effortlessly charming set of songs I’ve heard in a long time.”Recording sessions for the LP were spread across three different Bristol studios. With basic tracking completed, further elements were added in his bedroom studio, from vintage synths and drum machines, to strings, Mellotron and percussion. Arrangements and song structure in some cases went through several iterations until they rang true to songwriter Dan Weltman’s ears.

Dan Weltman: guitar, vocals / Anna Kissell: vocals Holly McIntosh: bass guitar, vocals / Robin Williams: electric guitar Matthew Chaney: keyboards / Steve Dixon: drums Francesca Simmons: violin, viola