From his debut LP Lavender God to its sophomore follow-up Out Here With You, everything before and in between, ATTLAS has become one of mau5trap's most celebrated artists. The Toronto native is a man of many hats, having grown up playing piano, trumpet, and guitar. The prolific composer and songwriter hails as the label's first ever signee. Now, ATTLAS (real name Jeff Hartford) returns to the deadmau5-fronted label to debut “Waterbug,” the first single from his forthcoming 3rd studio LP Carry It With You.
“It's an album of my toughest thoughts about myself that I was forced to address,” explains ATTLAS. “My past and my failures and my mistakes I could no longer bury or run from or hide. They were all that was around me. My isolation mentally and emotionally became extreme to the point of damaging, but I found peace in what I thought was a collapse. It afforded me new thoughts and emotions that, before I go, I should try to write down and share. I tried to write selfishly, which is to say maybe honestly. And the result of that honesty is flawed, ambitious, personal, and hard to explain. I miss a lot of the old me, but since I couldn't find the words to explain it I had to find the notes and the sounds to explain it, and that's what this album is. Be grand, be a disaster, do good, or apologize – you have to carry it with you.”
Diving head first into Carry It With You, ATTLAS' “Waterbug” is a sonic exploration of what is yet to come from his next body of work. An overture of sorts, “Waterbug” swells with rubato piano, tinkering on the surface elegantly before plunging into glistening depths. Showcasing his compositional prowess, ATTLAS masterfully crafts ambient with progressive in his latest.
Check out “Waterbug” wherever you find your music here, or stream it below on Spotify. ATTLAS' Carry It With You debuts in full on Friday, March 11.
