Radical Face To Release Final Installment Of The Family Tree Trilogy March 25
January 15, 2016 BY Nettwerk
“Instantly captivating…a layered, dark fairy tale – with pianos weaving in and out of lyrics that unravel slowly and poetically.” –The Wild Honey Pie on “The Road To Nowhere”
Ben Cooper, AKA Radical Face, will release the third and final installment of The Family Tree Trilogy on March 25th. The Family Tree: The Leaves brings to a close an unprecedented musical journey that began in the back shed of Ben’s family home in Jacksonville, FL nearly 10 years ago, and solidifies him as a unique and prolific storyteller. Lead single “The Road To Nowhere,” which premiered yesterday on The Wild Honey Pie, is available today.
Listen To + Share “The Road To Nowhere” Here:
Having always been interested in stories surrounding multi-generational family sagas, Ben embarked on a series of “Family Tree” albums, which trace the fantastical lives of a 19th century family, The Northcotes, whose blood flows with special abilities that range from seeing spirits to bringing the dead back to life. Their secrets bind them together, a warm flame held against a harsh world. Certain melodic patterns are used to represent certain family members, and those melodic patterns mutate and are passed down from generation to generation.
The Family Tree: The Leaves continues the narrative of The Northcotes, offering a polished, textured sound entirely crafted by Ben, who plays nearly all the instruments on the album. His DIY-ethic, which was forged in the early days with a four-track in his family’s back shed, has evolved into a lushly orchestrated album.
“The first record, The Roots, starts the smallest. The lyrics were all verbal storytelling, and it focused on small sounds, a floor tom, an acoustic guitar, and a piano,” Ben says. “Then each record it would get more broad, and it’d expand. The second one, The Branches, was all about written letters, and the third, The Leaves, is more cinematic. It’s a time period of film and photographs.”
The first two albums in the trilogy, The Family Tree: The Roots (released 2011) and The Family Tree: The Branches (released 2013) debuted at #20 and #10 on the Billboard Heatseekers Chart, respectively.
Radical Face will tour this Spring/Summer in support of The Family Tree: The Leaves. Stay tuned for tour dates.
The Family Tree: The Leaves Track Listing:
1. Secrets (Cellar Door)
2. Rivers in the Dust
3. Everything Costs
4. Midnight
5. The Ship in Port
6. Photograph
7. Third Family Portrait
8. The Road to Nowhere
9. Old Gemini
10. Bad Blood
