Norwich quartet Takeda announce the upcoming debut album In Venus’ Train (September 17th) and release the jiving folk-rock fizzer ‘Sugar Mountain’ (4th July) on Drongo Records. Blending alt-rock tendencies with folk undertones, the track displays the band’s ability to capture the palpable sense of energy of their live shows whilst honing a studio sharpness that allows the poetic lyricism and radiant melodies to shine.
Produced by David Pye (Szun Waves, Trudy & the Romance, Faithless, Dido), the single showcases intricate guitar work, with a distorted acoustic guitar delivering a crunchy, full-bodied tone layered over punchy drums and a grounding bassline. At the heart of the track are the emotive lead vocals of band leader Josh Harrison, whose nuanced performance is complemented by well-placed harmonies that ebb and flow with the song’s dynamic shifts.
Beginning with a folk-rock sensibility, the track gradually swells into a wall of fuzzy guitars and soaring vocals, leaning into alternative rock territory by its midpoint. It all builds to a powerful, explosive climax driven by intense guitar work and emotional release.
Talking about the single, Harrison explains: “Sugar Mountain is about feeling life slip away from you, like sand escaping from a clenched fist.
‘Sugar Mountain’ was recorded live, and is a raw studio take captured playing live together in the room. We wanted to get across the intensity of our live shows. The unique guitar sound is created on a Martin acoustic guitar, through two big valve amps, cranked! It goes from gentle finger picked guitar to a full fat fuzzed out guitar wall of noise. It’s supposed to feel unstable, borderline schizophrenic, massive dynamic range. Same with the vocals, from a quiet mumbled voice to an impassioned, shouted climax. The way the whole band explodes on demand and by surprise. That’s a theme with this whole album, lyrically and musically”
In Spring 2022, Josh Harrison escaped a cult in rural England and formed Takeda. Growing up in a cult was the fertile soil for sprouting a unique brand of Folk-Rock.
Having left with a catalog of songs, Josh recruited Charlie Wilson on Drums and David Woodgett on Bass. Together, they turned those songs into something way bigger than the sum of their parts, labelling themselves “the loudest acoustic guitar on Earth”. With Ollie Welch joining the band for the live stage, Takeda will be touring In Venus’ Train in September 2025 across the UK in support of the release.
The upcoming debut album In Venus’ Train channels mystical figures from folk-lore and biblical metaphors, writing songs about obsession, love and grieving a past life. Drawing influence in equal measure from British folk revivalists Fairport Convention and alt-metal icons Tool. Fusing the melodic and emotional sensibility of folk with the noise and fuzzed guitar tones of grunge, Takeda are making music that sounds something like if Nick Drake joined Pile.
Quartet Takeda – Sugar Mountain
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