A recent move from Boston to Rochester, N.Y., has given Coral Moons’ Carly Kraft plenty of time to recalibrate. Since the release of her indie-pop outfit’s 2021 debut, Fieldcrest, she’s simplified her life in a big way, raising chickens, making her own wine and recording in a home studio amid the trees. Coral Moons’ winsomely autobiographical new LP, Summer Of U, is the soundtrack to that dramatic lifestyle pivot. Look for it July 25 on Better Company Records.
We got Kraft’s thoughts on the album’s title track, the video’s amusement park shenanigans and more.
The song’s origins …
“It was inspired by a moment I had at Boston Calling in 2022. It was the first year we were on the festival lineup, and all of us were watching Japanese Breakfast together. There was a time in the set when the entire crowd was jumping along to one of the songs with a Ferris wheel in the background, and it felt so euphoric. We’d just gone through a really tough year as a band, and I realized in that exact moment that we were exactly where we needed to be.”
Her favorite part of the ‘Summer Of U’ video …
“If I had to narrow it down, it would be when we all went on the log flume. We all screamed together for the whole ride. We got absolutely soaked, and it was probably because all four of us together were over the weight limit.”
More on the upcoming LP …
“It’s basically a biography of my life over the past two years. It’s angry and blissful. Overall, it’s a victory album celebrating the feeling you have when you start healing fresh wounds. We wanted to bring listeners into the environment where I found healing over the past few years, so there are also little textures taken from my backyard and the woods. It’s a bit of a departure from our older stuff, but we feel like it represents our growth as a band. Our producer, Andy D. Park, pushed us to our limits, helping us navigate how our instruments supported the stories. We were also lucky enough to have our favorite guitarist, Jessica Dobson (Deep Sea Diver), come to the studio for a day and lay down some super-sexy guitar parts.”
We’re proud to premiere Coral Moons’ “Summer Of U” video.
—Hobart Rowland
