Back in 2016, a strange little tune emerged from a couple of dudes in Vancouver (Neil Smith, Cristopher Vanderkooy, Peter Wilton, and Mikey Pascuzzi). That tune gave us a lovely surf rock vibe laced with soaring guitars and distorted vocals. The song was called Peach Pit by Peach Pit. I wonder which came first? The song title or the band name? Asking the tough questions here. Legend has it that Chris’s great-great-grandfather was a peach farmer in the Lower Mainland and that’s where the name comes from. So probably the name came first…
Anyway, the tune became a viral hit pulling in over 46 million streams on Spotify and quickly earning the band a place amongst the giants of the deep genre of bedroom pop. Coincidentally, it happens to be one of my all-time favourite songs as well. The song’s success lead Peach Pit to release a cute little four song EP in 2016 titled Sweet FA. Side Note: I wish the EP was called Peach Pit too, that would’ve been perfection. The EP offered us more of the surf rock sound we were accustomed to.
In 2017, they dropped their first full-length LP titled Being So Normal on local label Kingfisher Bluez. The album gave us a more upbeat reimagining of Drop the Guillotine from the EP and the absolute banger Alrighty Aphrodite. I mean about as much of a banger as a lo-fi surf rock song can be. The album ends with a slower and sadder song than the normal offerings, Tommy’s Party. It has more of a breakup song feel than the sun-shiny, California coastline vibe they usually give. Regardless of that, it’s still a damn good song and a great way to end the album. I have very fond memories of listening to this album as I rode the train through the Japanese countryside. The laid-back feel of the album was great opposition to the hustle and bustle of Japan. And of course, I was proud to share the music of my country with my Japanese friends.
All the way back in April (which feels like years ago the way 2020 has gone) they released their sophomore effort titled You and Your Friends. To be honest I haven’t spent a lot of time with this album. To me, it doesn’t feel different enough from Being So Normal to go back to. When you have such important memories tied up in one album it’s hard to beat it. It does offer a few worthwhile singles though. Feelin’ Low (F*ckboy Blues), Black Licorice, and Shampoo Bottles are all solid tracks that had a place on my playlist at one time.
In early October they released the deluxe version of You and Your Friends which bumped it from 13 to 15 songs. It added one of my favourite songs of the fall up to this point though, Psychics in LA. It feels like a song that could’ve been on their original EP back in 2016. It brings back the distorted fuzzy vocals and vintage-sounding guitar riffs. I always wonder how the best songs don’t make it on to the main album. Why make us wait for the deluxe version??
YouTube/PEACH PIT
These four dudes are a huge success story from our very own Vancouver. They’ve cemented themselves as pioneers of the lo-fi alternative genre and gained worldwide success. I’m proud to call the same place home as these guys.
I mean look at this picture, how could you not love them??
Facebook/Peach Pit
You can support the band here: https://peachpitmusic.com/