Broken Gold today share the glistening power pop ripper “Fault”. The track is the final single to be released in advance of the band’s second studio full-length Wild Eyes.
On an album that is riven with reflection, “Fault” stands as a particularly striking testament to realization. From the opening salvo, “Feeling like the living dead, The dream had died inside my head” Broken Gold singer/guitarist Ian MacDougall navigates the equally cursed and blessed nature of being a touring musician. Years spent playing stages in places you’ve always dreamed of, all the while watching your home life disintegrate as relationships are strained and an exhausting never-ending search is undertaken for part time jobs to fill the downtime.
It’s a topic close to the heart of seasoned road dog MacDougal, who’s served lengthy stints with Band Of Horses and a legion of punk and crust bands, as well as over 20 years as a founding member of beloved Texan punks Riverboat Gamblers.
Notes MacDougal, “it’s sort of a cautionary tale in a way. Be careful what you wish for. This one’s about crumbling under pressure, constantly feeling like you’re getting tested and that you’re always at odds with everything but at the heart of everything you have to admit that you yourself are a root of the problems you’re having.”
“Fault” is taken from the upcoming Broken Gold album Wild Eyes, which is set for release on May 3rd via Austin hometown label Chicken Ranch Records. Wild Eyes was announced in January with the soul-searching single “Spiraling” and was followed by the raucous “Bad Days” which featured local legend Alejandro Escovedo on guest vocals.
The album name, Wild Eyes, is a nod to a lyrical phrase shared both by the album track “Shambling”, as well in Thin Lizzy’s “The Boys Are Back In Town”. The Thin Lizzy reference is one that always resonated with MacDougall who felt the line “guess who just got back today, them wild eyed boys that had been away” summed up the fried feeling of arriving home after weeks on tour.
The collection of songs that make up Wild Eyes reach across genre boundaries to showcase the technical versatility and emotional insight that MacDougall has refined over the past two decades as he performed everywhere from punk squats to headlining mainstages at Austin City Limits and Lollapalooza. The constant is the honesty and vulnerability in both MacDougall’s DIY ethics and approach to music, facts that are laid bare on every note of Wild Eyes.
To bring Wild Eyes to life, Broken Gold enlisted acclaimed engineer Stuart Sikes (The Walkmen, Modest Mouse, The White Stripes) to track and mix the record, while the legendary Howie Weinberg (Nirvana, Smashing Pumpkins) provided the mastering polish. Limited edition Wild Eyes vinyl preorders are available here.