THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Formed in 2018, Heavy Salad comprise a core trio of Lee Mann (live bassist with The Moonlandingz), Rob Glennie and Allan Hutchison. Bonding over a joint interest in psychedelic horror films, with Panos Cosmatos’ cult classic Mandy being a particular favourite, Heavy Salad loved the idea of being in a band like a psychedelic cult, albeit a cult with no rules, hence: Cult Casual! Part of the cult, the trio are now joined by Ally McBoo, Esther Maylor, Lucy Hope AKA The Priestesses and Oscar Remers, whose abilities for mesmeric backing vocals and general witchcraft bring their an otherworldly vibe to the Heavy Salad sound.
Written at their base in East Manchester, Cult Casual is a loose concept-album-of-sorts that explores the idea of finding your own reality in the modern world. Beginning with Death, the album takes the listener backwards through the very experiences of existence. From the after-life to apocalyptic visions of the future, via hallucinogenic nights plagued with polar bears and conversations with the AI in your phone, it’s quite literally the journey of a lifetime…
“You could loosely describe Cult Casual as something of a concept LP” explains lead-singer Lee, “lyrically, it’s an exploration of the experience of modern reality, it feels like the LP exists for this exact moment in time, we can’t wait for people to hear it!”
Taking in myriad musical influences from surf-rock and free-jazz to over-driven pop and experimental rock, Heavy Salad occupy that intangible space between perceived reality and the abyss of the mind. Combining a natural penchant for oddball melodies with a shared passion for the psych pop and acid rock wanderings of the likes of The Flaming Lips, The Beatles, Super Furry Animals, Blur and Queens Of The Stone Age, Cult Casual is an effusive melting pot of influences and ingenuity that you need in your life.”
