Big Wild has served as a form of musical escapism for the electronic project’s creator Jackson Stell for a decade now, but with his newly announced third LP Wild Child, the songwriter fully frees himself from his adult hangups. With a pivot to analog instruments and a dismissal of his ego, these 13 tracks signal a new chapter for the artist most easily discernible by the tonal shift from post-disco synths to indie-pop from an era when artists like Foster the People ruled the charts. “I can't really pinpoint inspiration besides following what excites me,” Stell shares. “I try to trust that feeling and not overthink it.”
Another notable feature of the new record is its guest list, which includes longtime collaborator iDA HAWK alongside jangle-pop peers Twen. Most notably, though, the album’s lead single “Too Loud” is a collaboration with Phantogram, whose Sarah Barthel lays hazy vocals atop the track’s thumping instrumental. “I was hung up on the second verse and the lyrics until I was connected with Sarah,” Stell shares. “Her voice was perfect and was the last big piece to the puzzle. She smashed it and my team and I were so stoked to work with her.”
“This song makes me want to roll the windows down and turn the volume all the way up,” Barthel adds. “Working with Jackson has been such a blast and we can’t wait to dance with you to this soon.”
Check out the song’s visualizer below, and pre-order Wild Child here ahead of its August 29 release via Giant Music.
