After the idyllic charm of last year’s debut single “All Packed Up / Don’t Drink The Water” Idiot Glee returns with his first album Paddywhack, which was released on June 7th on Moshi Moshi.

23-year-old James Friley trades in spectral transmissions: multi-layered vocal concoctions that sound like they are emitted from a radio in the past, or coming over an unknown satellite frequency from the future, telling stories about a more idyllic time.

Mining an emotional territory between nostalgia and powerful sense of childlike wonder, his rustic arrangements belie a sophisticated sense of melody surrounded by palpable magic and mystery. Hypnotic looped vocal samples come into full bloom around beautifully cathartic, slow-burning choral interpretations, all the while retaining a graceful fragility.

Having trained as a classical pianist from age 7, a teenage Friley found the designated hours of practice quickly gave way to writing and improvising his own solo piano compositions. Having more of a pop sensibility the songs didn’t fit the repertoire of budding rock band ‘Bedtime’ and hence Idiot Glee began to take shape.  

The discovery on cassette of Pet Sounds in a flea market in 2008 proved a pivotal point.  “I listened to it probably 100 times over the span of a year” he says and it became the catalyst in making Idiot Glee a full time hobby.

TOUR DATES:

7/30 – Funny Farm – Electric Eclectic Festival –  Meaford, Ontario
9/16 – DAAC – Grand Rapids, MI
9/19 – The Cause – Minneapolis, MN
9/22 – Zoo City Apparel – Missoula, MT
9/23 – The Josephine – Seattle, WA
9/24 – Waldorf Hotel – Vancouver, BC
9/25 – Mississippi Studios – Portland, OR
9/26 – The Alibi – Eureka, CA
9/27 – Hemlock Tavern – San Francisco, CA
9/29 – Continental Room – Fullerton, CA
9/30 – The Smell – North Hollywood, CA
10/1 – Tin Can Alehouse – San Diego, CA
10/2 – Yellow Canary Dancehall – Phoenix, AZ
10/4 – 29th St Ballroom – Austin, TX
10/5 – Canton Co-Op – Dallas, TX
10/6 – Outland Ballroom – Springield, MO
10/8 – Zanzabar – Louisville, KY