Profile: Meadow Meadow

When Spring King disbanded back in 2018 – not long after the release of their sophomore album – it came as a surprise to many who felt that the Macclesfield band had more to give. Two years later, ex-Spring Kingers Peter Darlington and James Green are back with a new band and a debut EP that demonstrates that yes – they do have a lot more to give.

While Spring King played with darker grooves and a more rock-focused aesthetic, Meadow Meadow signals a subtler and more musically mature direction for Darlington and Green. They told Only A Northern One that Meadow Meadow represents a “much more reflective, more psychedelic and folk influenced” entity than their previous incarnation. The roots of their new direction began at the tail end of Spring King’s lifespan. “We started writing for Meadow Meadow without realising it whilst writing the second Spring King album, it was great for us to channel our creativity into something which became incredibly cathartic for us both after the band ended.”

Although Meadow Meadow have an otherworldly feel, you can still feel a connection to the raw, hometown energy that fuelled their earlier work. Peter Darlington – from Macclesfield itself – says that his upbringing “really influenced the writing of our debut EP. Bonzo is about taking the bus from Macclesfield to Wilmslow. The second verse is based on a conversation I had in high school when I was 16.” Whereas the work of Spring King often felt like it represented late-night Northern town centres, Meadow Meadow adopts a more naturalistic setting, something that again links with their upbringing - “I often think about the forest, late night drives, the rabbits in the car park at night at Tegg's Nose. My love of the natural world was born there. It was also a place where I had some really difficult experiences.”

These difficult experiences form some of the more sombre moments on their self-titled EP, with the clear folk music influence really allowing these tender moments to shine. The duo seem unconcerned with boxing themselves into a particular sound, with the lack of a genre-focus allowing them to broaden their musical scope. The confidence that emanates from their debut project is not illustrated through braggadocio or bombast, but through a sense of musical liberation. Speaking on their sound, Green told OANO that he feels Meadow Meadow “have a unique sound, it’s always shifting – folk songs with electronic elements.”

However they or anyone else may define their sound, you can feel in each track released by Meadow Meadow that they have a real love of music. Speaking on their influences, although some could be expected – Neil Young, 808 State, Beck – some others may come as more of a surprise. Darlington in particular highlighted how he’d been “feeling really inspired by Vince Staples' production, Mitski's energy and Solange's arrangements.” Their debut EP highlights this diverse range of influences, with the expertly handled electronic elements elevating their work and making them unique amongst their peers.

What first draws you in about Meadow Meadow is how they convey an aesthetic and a mood. Before you’ve even pressed play, their EP and single artwork – created by Molley May – draws you in with evocative, Van Gogh-esque designs. Darlington first became aware of her work via Instagram, and felt like it worked perfectly with the sound they were creating, “Everything sits together beautifully. I felt her monoprints really worked for the EP and the single artworks. We've since developed a nice creative relationship”.

Their striking debut EP is a testament to Darlington and Green’s already significant creative catalogue, and it highlights a new direction that feels equally, if not more, exhilarating than their work with Spring King. It is rare to find artists that take such a radically different approach to a new project, and rarer still to see it delivered with such confidence. If their self-titled first project is anything to go by, they feel liberated by the freedom to create what they want – and we can’t wait to see where they go from here.

Check out our review of the Meadow Meadow EP here.

Interview: Sophie Swift

Words: Will Rosebury