<img class="alignright" title="Rich Bennett" src="http://www.hiddenshoal.com/wp-content/uploads/rich-bennett.jpg" alt="" width="180" height="161" />Hidden Shoal Recordings has announced the digital pre-release of the forthcoming sophomore album <a href="http://www.hiddenshoal.com/wp-content/uploads/index.php?main_page=product_info&amp;cPath=31&amp;products_id=147"><em>On Holiday</em></a> by New York's shadowy lounge-pop maestro <a href="http://www.hiddenshoal.com/wp-content/uploads/index.php?main_page=index&amp;cPath=31">Rich Bennett</a>.

Influenced by the classic exotica of Martin Denny, the aching folk-pop of Fleet Foxes, and the conceptual sweep of The Zombies’ Odessey and Oracle, <em>On Holiday</em> is, on the surface, ‘a day in the life of a vacation’. Brimming with delicious breezy melodies and the buoyant vocals of both Bennett and Brooklyn-based singer-songwriter Rebecca Pronsky, the optimistic side of the album is typified by gorgeous single ‘Misty Valley’ and the expansive, home-on-the-range vibe of ‘Back Around’. The luscious contours of these songs are immediately inviting, but follow their flowing lines and there’s no resolution – just an anxious question mark.

The other side of the album, lurking like a shadow, is the knowledge that you’re in the middle of a fantasy and it’s only fleeting, soon to return to normal life. This nagging feeling of emptiness runs throughout, whether it’s the reflective whistling and watery phased melodies of ‘EPO’, the gloriously disorientating multi-tracked saxophone solo on ‘Night Part 1’, or the delicious minor key ‘Night Part 2’. Closing track ‘Green Memories’ casts doubt on whether the holiday was even real, its strings and woodwinds mustering a sense of intoxicating, queasy melancholy.

<em>“brings together the sophisticated pop soundtracks of Burt Bacharach and Ennio Morricone with the electronic detail of Stereolab and Delia Derbyshire…. If you’re a fan of retro-futurist pop such as the High Llamas then this will be up your aisle”</em> <strong>– Proper Songs on Music for Underwater Supermarkets</strong>

<a href="http://www.hiddenshoal.com/wp-content/uploads/index.php?main_page=product_info&amp;cPath=31&amp;products_id=147"><em>On Holiday</em></a> is available now in all digital formats including lossless and will see its official CD release on 29th of July 2010. Check the <a href="http://www.hiddenshoal.com/wp-content/uploads/index.php?main_page=product_info&amp;cPath=31&amp;products_id=147">Hidden Shoal Store</a> for all availability info including CD pre-orders. Read a full press release <a href="http://www.hiddenshoal.com/publicity/press-releases/HSR_Press_Release-Rich_Bennett-On_Holiday.pdf">here</a>.

<a href="http://www.hiddenshoal.com/wp-content/uploads/Media/HSR_Radio/rich_bennett/on_holiday/07_Night_Part_2.mp3">Rich Bennett - Night Part 2</a> <em>Rich Bennett - Night Part 2</em>