Hailing from the vibrant musical town of Bethlehem, PA, Smooth Retsina Glow burst onto the scene and is riding high on its upward trajectory, captivating audiences with its ability to effortlessly craft beautiful pieces of music no matter the genre. Whereas their previous release, “Overcoming,” made waves off its easy, dreamy and relaxing sound, “Bound by Desire” sees the band switch things up and instead employ funk-style grooves and sound to significant effect.
Whereas “Overcoming” proved Smooth Retsina Glow could put out quality, catchy music capable of captivating listeners, “Bound by Desire” proves that this quality is sustainable for the band. Penned by the band’s gifted guitarist and co-vocalist Colin Wolf, “Bound by Desire” also proves Smooth Retsina Glow has international appeal, earning substantial airplay in Japan, the UK, Canada and Australia, which is no small feat. With their unique sound and versatility, all signs point to Smooth Retsina Glow captivating listeners everywhere for years to come.
Over funk-infused instrumentals that just ooze that groove from your sound systems, Colin Wolf anchors us with lines like “My emotions conspire / No 2nd place will ever suffice oh yeah, bound by desire”. It’s another impressive offering from a band full of pleasant surprises. Additionally, whereas some bands may stutter with live performances, Smooth Retsina Glow are prolific performers, playing gigs as many as five or six times a week, all in the name of perfecting their craft and connecting with their fans. With their highly anticipated fourth album, “Gemini Reign,” on the way, it seems there’s nothing they can’t do.
As Smooth Retsina Glow continues their meteoric rise, they show no signs of slowing down. Whenever you’re ready, stream Smooth Retsina Glow’s “Bound By Desire,” available now on all major streaming platforms.
Welcome back to BuzzMusic, Smooth Retsina Glow! We had high expectations for you after “Overcoming,” but you knocked it out of the park with “Bound By Desire” in a completely different way! We have to ask, what inspired the change of style and “Bound By Desire” itself?
It comes down alot to our music preferences, mainly Colin Wolf's- our guitarist, main vocalist, and songwriter- he always tends to prefer artists who are somewhat diversified in their approach- like how David Bowie changed his image and sound multiple times through his career, Frank Zappa's phases, how Todd Rundgren followed up Something Anything? with A Wizard A True Star, and even modern artists like Paramore, St Vincent, Taylor Swift, John Mayer, or King Gizzard have been able to reinvent their sound and persona on various occasions. The Song Bound by Desire originated from a jam session Colin was playing with friends outside of SRG- a casual get-together- in June 2022 and was finalized in a couple of weeks. Artists that inspired the sound of Bound By Desire include Vulfpeck, Lake Street Dive, Little Feat, The Meters, and Sly Stone- echoes of each artist can be detected to a degree, but made our own.
You are, by any measure, prolific performers. How do you think performing your music constantly helps you as an artist?
Our schedule certainly keeps us up to speed musically, and it is more than a fiscal reward. Every performance generally shows our socials increase in numbers, sometimes more, sometimes less, but added all up, there has been a consistent fanbase growth. Now, people are coming just because they saw something we may have posted on our socials. Plus- as enjoyable as a studio is- live music is something that can't be bettered.
What is your favorite musical memory together as a group?
Pine Ridge Fest Fest- it was love at first sight- we first played there back in October of 2022, and it went over so well we got upgraded to the Main Stage for the Memorial Day festival- which we will be taking to on Sunday, May 28th- 2.30 to 4.15- save the date! Also, our monthly residency at the F and A Grog House in Bethlehem- they take incredible care of us, and we always make new friends and followers there- and it's only a 5 minutes drive for some of us!
For any fans who want to follow in your footsteps, what do you think is the most important thing for a musician to have?
Patience and Practice. You can't expect instant gratification and must work at it. There is a reason they have the 10,000 hours rule for music- the more you work at it, the sooner it will come. Also, basic human etiquette helps- be professional, look your best, perform for the people, not yourself, talk to your peers to glean advice, and try to have as little personal fallout as possible. Most importantly, do it for the love of it and not for any of the supposed perks.
Your fourth album, “Gemini Reign,” is slated for release soon. What has been your favorite part about seeing your visions for the album come to life, and are there any particular songs you’re especially excited to share with your fans?
For Gemini Reign, it has certainly been the best recorded, composed, and build, with each single raising our profile and stoking the suspense for the physical product to arrive. Each Single, starting with Overcoming and Bound By Desire, was promoted effectively with the resources at hand and got our new fans from all over the globe- a superb reception live, not to mention a Relix magazine feature in March of this year. This can be attributed to Colin Wolf's ever-maturing songwriting and production skills, as well as our new Engineer Matt Mulchany, who did an incredible job mixing and mastering and bringing out the best in the group on a performance level. We are morphing our set- and currently, 7 of the 10 songs that will compromise Gemini Reign have been included- and they are getting the best reception yet. When our June single is released - it should stand on Bound by Desire's shoulders! Stay tuned!