The Sleds Combine Two Narratives into One With ‘Pretty Penny’
So far this decade, the music scene around New England has had a wide assortment of talented acts come up and make an impact in the region. Look at cities like Portland, Burlington, New Haven, Worcester, Providence and Boston, and each of them has at least a handful of musicians and bands exhibiting pristine sounds. A band from the latter city is The Sleds, who have a classic alt-rock approach that’s fused with a modern flair. On August 29, the quartet of lead vocalist and guitarist Jared Conroy, guitarist Chris Nicastro, bassist Brandon Sullivan and drummer Andy Garrels released the single “Pretty Penny”. While having a catchy doo-wop vibe, the song also has a double meaning with it being both a love song and a metaphorical commentary on economic disparity.
Garrels wrote the tune back in the beginning of 2021 after Nicastro spent some money on an expensive piece of equipment that he had always wanted. After he heard a remark about how much it cost, Garrels was inspired to come up with a new song for the band to learn and perform.
“Chris had just depleted a pandemic stimulus check on his dream amp: a gigantic Vox AC15HW,” Conroy says about how the single came to be. “As he was lugging the amp to his car, he remarked that the amp ‘cost a pretty penny’. Andy immediately noted that ‘Pretty Penny’ would be a great song title, so he went home that night and wrote the chorus about a love interest at the time who had beautiful, curly hair like his, inspiring the lyric ‘Pretty Penny, you’ve got hair like mine’. Andy brought the song to the band at the next rehearsal and Chris quickly helped finish the lyrics for the verse and came up with a bridge progression for which I wrote the lyrics and a soaring melody. The song is sonically inspired by The Beatles and Tom Petty predominantly, as well as The Beach Boys for the harmonies on the bridge section.”
“As a whole, the song is written from the perspective of a poor boy who hopes to win the love of a rich girl,” he adds. “There is a double meaning with lyrics like ‘Pretty Penny, I wanna call you mine’ which can also refer to the desire for money. This song, in addition to most of the upcoming album it belongs to, was inspired by our experiences as broke musicians, particularly in regard to our lovelives. ‘I would buy you anything tonight, but I’m a penny shy’ is an ironic line because, by the end of his divided quest for love and money, our narrator is left with neither.”
The initial recording session for “Pretty Penny” was done in March of last year at Cybersound Recording Studios located in the heart of Boston’s Back Bay. The band then took it over to Joe Merrick at Ultrasound Productions in Hanover for the finish touches. The track is a preview of The Sleds’ upcoming sophomore album that’s due out in the near future, but for now, enjoy the song via the link below.
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