Seahawks

British duo Seahawks have crafted an expansive catalog of trippy, laid-back releases that blend influences such as new age, yacht rock, and cosmic disco, all combined with psychedelic imagery informed by oceanography and sci-fi. The project consists of Jon Tye, founder of the well-respected Lo Recordings label as well as a member of the Krautrock-inspired group Brain Machine, and Welsh illustrator Pete Fowler, best known for his Monsterism toys and characters, and designing album artwork for Super Furry Animals and other bands. Since 2010, the duo have released dozens of full-lengths and EPs, mostly on their own Captains Log and Ocean Moon imprints. While seemingly inhabiting a self-contained world of their own, Seahawks have also collaborated with several artists over the years. Following early singles with Badly Drawn Boy and Autre Ne Veut, their 2014 full-length Paradise Freaks included guest appearances from Tim Burgess (Charlatans), Maria Minerva, and Indra Dunis (Peaking Lights). The pair have also provided remixes for artists including 2 Bears, the Horrors, and Ursula 1000, and have recorded a full-length collaboration with uncategorizable duo Woo, 2019's Celestial Railroads. 2022's Infinite Echo leaned toward smooth jazz, and 2024's Time Enough for Love dipped into downtempo exotica. Jon Tye and Pete Fowler formed Seahawks in 2009. They released several limited vinyl singles throughout 2010, most of which (apart from "You Lied [Lies & Manipulation]" with Badly Drawn Boy) were included on debut full-length, Ocean Trippin', issued at the end of the year. The duo's prolific run continued in 2011. Besides the full-length Invisible Sunrise, they released Another Summer with Seahawks (a 7" packaged with a CD), picture-disc LP Vision Quest One: Spaceships Over Topanga Canyon (on Static Caravan), and the singles "Don's Rainbow" (with Autre Ne Veut) and "High on You." They also began issuing a series of mix CDs reflecting their DJ sets, blending soft rock and psych with mellow disco. The proper full-length Aquadisco and limited LP Tender Abyss, featuring tracks from an earlier CD-R, both appeared in 2012. Nodding to the group's dancefloor-friendly side, Seahawks released the extended disco single "Adventures in the Land of Woo" and remix album Phantom Sunset: Invisible Sunrise Remixed in 2013. Paradise Freaks, the duo's most collaborative, vocal-heavy full-length to date, appeared in 2014, along with remix EP Stranger Than Paradise. Continuing to align themselves with the neo-disco scene, Seahawks released the Sky Party 12" (with Eddie C) and another remix collection, Deep Haul, in 2015. Heading into more of a new age-influenced direction, Seahawks issued Escape Hatch in 2016. Pipe Dreams, released under the name Pink Fluid but credited as being written and produced by Seahawks, appeared in 2017. This was followed by Eternal Beams (as Seahawks) in 2018. Eyes of the Moon, the duo's first release for Cascine, arrived in 2019; Tye explained the album's concept as the idea of observing Earth from the Moon and beholding its beauty while also witnessing its destruction. Later in the year, the pair issued Celestial Railroads, an LP with new age-adjacent duo Woo. Island Visions was released in 2020, and in 2021, Seahawks reissued Secrets of the Deep on vinyl (it was originally packaged as a CD-R along with a 2010 single). Returning to Cascine, Infinite Echo surfaced in 2022. Time Enough for Love, an album of post-rave exotica inspired by Harry Nilsson demos, appeared in 2024. ~ Paul Simpson, Rovi