Ralph has unveiled the second single, “Love Potion” from her upcoming EP, GRADIENCE, set to be released on July 7, 2021. The single is accompanied by a music video, and the announcement of a 10-date November Canadian tour with support from Alex Porat, plus four US dates in 2022.
Inspired by icons like Cher, Donna Summer, and Kate Bush, the EP returns to the glam 70s/80s-inflected sound of RALPH’s 2017 self-titled debut EP, while simultaneously leaning into contemporary, fresh folk. The songs draw from RALPH’s experiences and her friend’s stories, blurring the lines between reality and fantasy. With syncopated guitars and blipping synths over a four-on-the-floor groove, “Love Potion” is disco-driven act of desperation. The zany, retro-futuristic video finds Captain RALPH traversing the galaxy to Planet Nipply to be with her lover.
Ralph shares,
“I wrote ‘Love Potion’ almost a year ago with my sweet pals David Charles Fischer and Terence Lam (the same team behind ‘Gravity’). I had just watched the movie Midsommar and couldn’t get the imagery out of my head. I kept thinking about this one scene where the cult women create a love potion to woo the male protagonist…and soon I was deep in a google hole of “history of love potions” (they date back to Biblical times!) I came into the session with that as my lyrical inspiration, and pretty soon we wove a dance-y, bass-soaked story of a woman afraid she’s loving her lover…so she cooks up a brew to remind him just how sweet she is. Many thanks to Herag Sanbalian, who put the finishing touches on the song and even added real choir voices plus live strings in there!”
On the video, she adds,
“The video is directed by Renee Rodenkirchen, who directed my last video for ‘Tommy’, and was inspired by one of my favourite movies Earth Girls Are Easy, Honey, I Shrunk the Kids, Gucci fashion campaigns, Britney’s ‘Oops I Did It Again’ music video, the 1960s TV show UFO, and our shared love of the absurd. I asked my long-time friend Michael Seater (you may recognize him from his iconic role in Life With Derek) to play the role of my alien lover, and his enthusiasm towards big platforms and having his skin painted purple was truly wonderful. We shot in a studio and set up four separate scenes, then shot the exterior galaxy images a week later (fun fact: the paper mache planets were crafted by my mother and installed by my dad). I’m so in awe of the hand-built sets and the amazing wigs, makeup and costumes! I had some much fun co-styling and working with the beauty team on how to achieve our desired retro/futuristic/ weirdness aesthetic. I love that everyone really went it for when we said ‘BIG, WEIRD AND BEAUTIFUL.'”
Check out the video below, and the upcoming tour dates.
TOUR DATES:
Nov 9 – Victoria. BC – Capital Ballroom
Nov 10 – Vancouver, BC – The Biltmore
Nov 12 – Edmonton, AB – Starlite Room
Nov 13 – Calgary, AB – Commonwealth Bar & Stage
Nov 15 – Regina, SK – Artesian on 13th
Nov 17 – Winnipeg, MB – Park Theatre
Nov 23 – London, ON – Rum Runners
Nov 24 – Hamilton, ON – The Casbah
Nov 25 – St. Catharines, ON – Warehouse
Nov 27 – Montreal, QC – Petit Campus
Dec 30 – Toronto, ON – The Phoenix
Jan 27, 2022 – Chicago, IL – Schubas
Jan 29, 2022 – New York, NY – Mercury Lounge
Feb 2, 2022 – San Francisco, CA – Rickshaw Stop
Feb 4, 2022 – Los Angeles, CA – Moroccan Lounge