PELA release their highly anticipated debut EP ‘Little Ceremonies’
Since dropping their debut single in 2020, Brighton-based duo PELA have been on the rise with their hypnotic music.
Spending the last year hidden away beside the sea and sharing two single releases, the pairing can now unveil their highly anticipated debut EP, Little Ceremonies – a collection of tracks that truly speak to their incredible talents.
As masters of spacious alt-pop, previous singles “Tell Me” and “Heavy” – both of which were co-written with Liz Lawrence – display PELA’s sublime orchestration.
With Hannah Coombes’ caramel-soft vocals tenderly layered over Olly Shelton’s textured production, the duo blend together with an impressive ease. With delicate piano melodies on the featherweight “holy / wholly“, the pair return to their atmospheric notions on “i hope you are Happy”. Constructing a calming soundscape of soothing electronics and sleek sax, it’s a moment of meditative bliss.
While on title track “Little Ceremonies“, the combination of hazy guitar lines and glacial harmonies produce a single built with percussive melancholy. Echoing this ethereality within the track’s celestial vocals and magical tones, it’s an elegant EP closer.
PELA tell us more: “Little Ceremonies is the title track of the EP and is in many ways our favourite song on it. It’s about how making everyday acts ceremonial and precious can be a way to find joy, peace and solace from anxiety and pain.”
Speaking about their debut EP, PELA says: “This is our debut EP and our first time bringing a body of work together that is connected. ‘Tell Me’ and ‘Heavy’ confront frustration and anxiety, both personal and political and we really expanded the scope of our sound with these – co-writing both with Liz Lawrence and bringing other musicians on board too. The 3 other songs on the EP – ‘holy / wholly’, ‘I hope you are Happy’ and ‘Little Ceremonies’ – were a way to transform those feelings.”
