Band of The Month: Battle Tapes Set 'Valkyrie' Ablaze at Swing House

We’ve been blasting the new album from L.A. synth rockers Battle Tapes for nearly a month now, and with the November 20th release of Polygon arriving we considered it the perfect time to bring the boys in for a Band of The Month session.

Battle Tapes – consisting of Josh Boardman (vox/guitar/synth), Riley Mackin (keys/vox) and Stephen Bannister (bass), Beak Wing (drums/percussion) – have built a good head of steam on the strength of two EPs released so far, Sleepwalker and Sweatshop Boys, with tracks appearing in Grand Theft Auto V, as well as the Need For Speed film and a slew of TV shows. The sounds of Polygon are a thrilling evolutionary step for the band, who produced, engineered, mixed and mastered the record entirely by themselves. It’s the culmination of years the band spent writing and crafting a musical template that blurs the intersection of multiple music genres.

Crave was proud to premiere the official video for “Valkyrie,” the album’s infectious debut single and a pulsing, upbeat track supported by a cinematically lit live-performance clip. Now we’ve taken the extra step in recruiting the guys for our Band of the Month run, holing up at Swing House studios for a series of exclusive performances which kick off with a new spin on “Valkyrie”.

“We often look upon the past with the notion that they really don’t make them like they used to,” frontman Josh Boardman explains. “‘Valkyrie’ is a gentle reminder that we’ve always been out of our minds. It’s slightly ironic how advancements in technology haven’t necessarily produced advancements in our culture,” he continues. “If anything, it’s only helped reveal our outrage-of-the-week, celebri-lusting tendencies. But at the end of the day, what did we really expect? I mean, you can give an ape an iPhone, but don’t be surprised when he uses it to tweet about bananas. So I guess that’s what ‘Valkyrie’ is about to me. Banana Tweets.”

Battle Tapes are plotting their next tour, the first official outing after the release of Polygon. Keep up with the band on Facebook and their official site, where you can pre-order the record. Check back next week for another Band of The Month performance from the guys.