Sandmoon

“We live in uncertain times, and this album echoes the state of the world, yet looks beyond the immediacy to explore the essence of things,” say Lebanon’s Sandmoon about their new full-length record.

Sandmoon was formed by Lebanese-Armenian singer/songwriter Sandra Arslanian in Beirut in the early 2010s. With several albums and EP’s under its belt, the band recently released its third full length album, entitled “While We Watch the Horizon Sink”.

An intense collection of songs exploring dream and indie pop, rock and folk, the album delves into emotions emanating from living through the dystopian, surrealistic times of the last couple of years worldwide, and especially in Sandra’s home country of Lebanon.

From nationwide social protests and the hope they fostered, from Covid restrictions and lockdown fatigue, from the Beirut port explosion and the meltdown of a country, to spiritual awakening and a novel, transformed perspective.

Sandra explains: “After releasing my previous album ‘Put a Gun/Commotion‘ in 2020, I didn’t have the intention to record any new album. However, one thing led to another, songs started to take shape. So much was going on in the world and in Lebanon, I felt the urge to express the emotions I was going through, in a cathartic way.”

“Releasing ‘While We Watch the Horizon Sink’ feels like a genuine “release” – a release of emotions bottled up during the past two intense, tumultuous years,” she adds. “We live in uncertain times, and ‘While We Watch the Horizon Sink’ echoes the state of the world, yet looks beyond the immediacy to explore the essence of things.”

Raucous guitars and Sandra’s rich, intense vocals are ever present on the album, but the album’s varied instrumentation also includes piano and synths.

The record was produced by Marwan Tohme at Tunefork Studios in Lebanon; it features Arslanian on main vocals, synths and guitar; Sam Wehbi on lead guitar, Georgy Flouty (from Kozo) on bass, and Dani Shukri (from Tanjaret Daghet) on drums. Highly recommended listening.

Stream “While We Watch The Horizon Sink” LP on Spotify.

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