October 28, 2020 | 0 Comments

WEEKEND LOVERS – I LOVE U IN REAL LIFE is at Top 200 Radio Now!!!

Allow me to introduce you to the jewel of Tucson: Weekend Lovers! I mailed out a very few hard copies of this one – I only had the smallest handful of physical CDs to work with this time, so if we’re regularly in touch and I know you need them you’ve probably got one at your station by now; otherwise, yours is probably a digital copy (although I just got a tiny handful more to send out as requests, so hit me up asap if you need one!) – either way it’s time to jump on board with this good stuff!! This fun post-punk-meets-dream-pop lady-fronted band came to me via Totally Real Records, a new label which is run by, guess what, my old pal Bryan of Mount Sharp!! It’s all connected. Those two bands are not exact soundalikes, but they’re in a similar ballpark, so odds are very good that if you liked that Mount Sharp record I worked this past spring, you’ll likely dig this Weekend Lovers record as well. Marta De Leon, bandleader of Weekend Lovers, has (previous to her current home of Tucson) lived in Seattle and Brooklyn – much like me! – although in the opposite order of my wanderings, so we never actually crossed paths IRL. Until now, when I get to work her super cool record!! Check it out, it’s got a cover of George Michael’s “Father Figure” and a bunch of other stuff you’re gonna like!! (And PS regarding the extra-specific FCC warning you’ll note below: I know most stations can play “asses”, but some like to know about even the mildest swears too, so it’s better safe than sorry to just let you know – and I want you to know you can trust my info on this kinda thing! Track 8 says “asses” and that’s it; if that’s not a problem for you than this whole album is FCC Clean!!) Weekend Lovers yes!!!

WEEKEND LOVERS

I LOVE U IN REAL LIFE

Totally Real Records

Bassist, vocalist and songwriter Marta De Leon cut her musical teeth in Seattle indie bands before relocating to NYC, where she fronted Brooklyn-based art pop band The Meaning of Life. Tucson-based band Weekend Lovers marks a return to De Leon’s desert roots, a street smart modern indie rock band kissed with dark clouds and monsoons, combining infectious hooks, soul-wrenching lyrics and punch-to-the-gut rock swagger, and laced with just enough 80s pop and new wave magic to make the songs seem both brand new and achingly familiar.

The band’s debut album, When U Were Weird (2018), gained the band a devoted hometown following and garnered local and national press in such outlets as Tucson Weekly, Tucson Sentinel, Impose Magazine, Turn Up The Volume and Jangle Pop Hub.

Now, De Leon and her bandmates, guitarist Danny Perez and drummer Gabi Lisk, aim to invoke their MTV era spiritual forebears with their sophomore album, I Love U In Real Life, featuring some of the band’s best material to date.

The new album’s first single, “Baby”, quickly earned a place in the rotations of Arizona’s indie radio stations. Next, original track “2Soon” is a bass-driven, harmony rich indie gem that explores the parallels between personal and creative loss, with inspiration from Stevie Nicks, Scorcese and the hazy gauze of not-quite 2020 hindsight. “Father Figure” is a gender-flipped take on the 1987 George Michael classic, subversively weird and coyly flirtatious, but unabashedly nostalgic. Perfect for any quarantine new music playlist.

I Love U In Real Life was produced and engineered by eight-track wiz/vintage studio guru Matt Rendon of The Resonars. The tracks were recorded at Midtown Island Studio in Tucson, studio home to a host of bands including The Resonars, The Exbats, The Rifle, and Lenguas Largas.