“True” is our first taste in two years of Chad Valley, one of Hugo Manuel’s musical pseudonyms. Following 2013’s irresistibly dancey Young Hunger, “True” leads the neon-dripped campaign toward his new record due in October, Entirely New Blue. The upcoming album was recorded between London and Oxford, after a breakup with his girlfriend spurred his move back north, and the melancholy seeps through his sanguine crooning on “True”.
Caught between wanting her back and being confident in the separation, Chad Valley sweetly sings through his roundabout thoughts over a gently glittery house beat. As easily as “True” falls into a compelling groove, he leaves enough space to force his shimmeringly clean vocals—with all their vulnerability intact—into the limelight. He doesn’t linger on his pain, though, as the synths reach an immersively upbeat head that ends with the proclamation, “Better off now I’m without you.”
Entirely New Blue is out October 2 on Cascine. Chad Valley is also embarking on an extensive tour starting in September. North American dates are below.
September
17 Brooklyn, NY at Wythe Hotel (Cascine Five-Year Party)
19 Sacramento, CA at TBD Festival
23 Costa Mesa, CA at The Wayfarer
24 Los Angeles, CA at Mondrian Hotel Rooftop
29 Boston, MA at Great Scott
30 Toronto, ON at Drake Hotel
October
2 Cincinnati, OH at Motr Pub
3 Chicago, IL at Schubas
4 Madison, WI at The Frequency
5 Des Moines, IA at Vaudeville Mews
6 St Paul, MN at Turf Club
7 Kansas City, MO at Riot Room
8 Denver, CO at Lost Lake Lounge
9 Salt Lake City, UT at Kilby Court
10 Boise, ID at Reef
12 Seattle, WA at Barboza
13 Portland, OR at Mississippi Studios
15 San Francisco, CA at Bottom Of The Hill
17 San Diego, CA at The Hideout
19 Phoenix, AZ at Valley Bar
20 El Paso, TX at Lowbrow Palace
21 Dallas, TX at Three Links
22 Austin, TX at Red 7
23 San Antonio, TX at Limelight
24 Baton Rouge, LA at Spanish Moon
25 Atlanta, GA at Masquerade
28 New Haven, CT at Bar
29 Brooklyn, NY at Baby’s All Right
30 Philadelphia, PA at Boot And Saddle
31 Washington, DC at U Street Music Hall
