For all its intimacy, The Feelings Parade’s delicate yet melodic precision is immediately reminiscent of Cat Power, and Beth Orton, while retaining a true folk roots authenticity. The duo’s story is one of patience and perseverance, not unlike most artists about to take over in very early 2020, who were suddenly halted, yet found ways to triumph internally.
In February of 2020, songwriters Morgan Bolender and Scott Ferreter entered a studio to record the heart of their first proper studio album as The Feelings Parade.
The global Covid-19 pandemic curtailed some of that progress, though the duo kept recording at home and where it was distant and safe. With the van loaded up and their home studio ready to be moved for the eighth time — roughly about a week before the album was finished — Morgan had an unexpected 8-minute seizure, which led to brain surgery. From there, Morgan (who couldn’t have visitors in the hospital) sent recorded updates by the doctor to Scott, who was parked outside in the van. Those recordings soon became part of the larger framework of the duo’s much-delayed but eagerly awaited debut release, Let It Move You.
Fortunately, the bones of this remarkable debut were laid down just before the pandemic, and some songs date back a few years; that said, the record is remarkably consistent and present, even as new ideas, collaborators and Morgan’s spoken-word updates were added, along with voicemails from friends and a powerful pre-surgery pep talk voicemail from Scott. These communications, initially private, were a way for Morgan to feel support through an impossibly hard time..
“These songs, whenever they’re from, feel like they live together on this album,” says Scott. “There’s an existing throughline and deeper truths to what we do and what we talk about. So even with everything that happened, we kind of told the story before it happened.”
The duo’s healing harmonies are summoned to evoke some heartfelt reactions, and this is truly exemplified in the video for “Too Much,” that Glide is premiering below.
The music video was filmed on the street featuring 13 individuals who were open to listening to the song and sharing their thoughts. Directors, Gabriel Diamond and Candice Holdorf, said, “The music video includes every single person we filmed. As people listened, we realized there was something deeper at play – a longing to be witnessed. At its root, that’s all our invitation asked of the participants. You can see from the film that several of the people were moved. It’s remarkable how these powerful emotions occurred within a short time – especially since these were strangers being filmed. It’s a testament to the power of the song, and how it taps into all-too-common experiences of unsafety – particularly for those who are women/femme, queer, and BIPOC.”
In discussing the poignant song, Scott said, “A song that Morgan initially wrote from the perspective of being a woman and feeling unsafe in the world because of it. We thought of it from that perspective until our first time performing it live, when Morgan looked out and saw our dear friend who’s Black and non-binary, and realized all at once that this song applies to so much more than just women; it’s for everyone who’s less safe because of the body they’re in (more or less anyone who isn’t a white, straight-appearing, able-bodied, cisgendered man). We want this song to hold anyone who lives that reality and to open the eyes of anyone who doesn’t.