Shapes and Shadows

Ben Ottewell, member of the acclaimed British rock band Gomez, presents his first solo album. The nine tracks on Shapes and Shadows were co-produced by Ottewell and Will Golden and mixed by Tom Biller (Liars, Warpaint, Karen O & the Kids) at The Chalet in Los Angeles, California. Ottewell's gruff/tender pipes are among the most recognizable in music, and his deft slide guitar playing graces much of Gomez's repertoire. During his tenure in Gomez, Ottewell has shared in great success over the last decade, including the awarding winning Bring It On and their biggest commercial and critical success yet with their last two releases, How We Operate and A New Tide. The decision to branch out as a solo artist at this point in his career stemmed from the band's recording sessions for Gomez' most recent album, A New Tide. 'I've been wanting to do something outside of Gomez for a while but I took my time to ensure that the material had a voice of its own,' say Ottewell. He sat down with childhood friend Sam Genders (previously of Tunng) to collaborate on the ideas. As Ben explains, 'Sam and I grew up together in a little village called Bonsall in Derbyshire and have been friends since childhood. I love his songwriting . . . we've been wanting to do this sort of thing for a while now.' With the co-writers deep understanding of each other's roots and having grown up together, there is a strong theme of looking back and recollecting.