On past LPs, the Seattle-based group Barcelona have shown an affinity for groups like Coldplay. With their 2014 single “Fall in Love”, though, the band took a more minimalist, electronic direction, one far more successful than Coldplay’s snorefest Ghost Stories. To add to this electronic experimentation, Barcelona took to the Moog studio to put a fresh spin on “Fall in Love”. As the video capture of the performance attests, these Seattleites harnessed the dizzying array of synth options with aplomb.
On 31 May, Barcelona headed off to record their new LP. Lead singer Brian Fennell tells PopMatters more about this: “We spent much of 2014 on the road, so it’s been nice to be home the past few months in a bit of a hibernation. Now, we are on the eve of a new record, which is always exciting. We usually record here in Seattle, but this time we are headed to Norman, Oklahoma to a studio full of quirky vintage gear amidst a landscape of thunderstorms and styrofoam cups. This new batch of songs is hungry for new scenery and a change in pallet. We are bringing three things to Norman: shorts, bug repellant, and our Sub 37.”
Here are the technical specifics of the instruments played in the video:
With a studio full of analog electronic instruments from Moog Music, Barcelona made full use of their new set of musical tools:
Singer/guitarist, Brian Fennell, adds space and spin to his Moog Guitar with an MF-104 Analog Delay and MF-103 12-Stage Phaser. He sings through a 500 Series Analog Delay while the Minimoog Voyager in front of him is controlled remotely via MIDI sync and pulses an added bass line to the chorus.
Keyboardist Branden Cates plays the main bassline on a Sub Phatty while adding melodies with a Sub 37 analog synthesizer, and Drummer Rhett Stonelake triggers 6 rack-mounted Minimoog Voyagers to serve as the backbeat of the track.
“Fall in Love” is a track off of Barcelona’s 2014 EP Love You.
For comparison, here’s the original version of “Fall in Love”: