Incredible Yacht Control Releases ‘Jen’s Dad’s Telescope’ Single + Announces ‘pastor al’ Album
Home Alone are pleased to announce the new solo album pastor al from ex-Portland, now Aotearoa based musician Incredible Yacht Control (aka Bret Vogel).
The first single Jen’s Dad’s Telescope is out now, with the full album dropping on September 5.
Vogel’s former band Crosstide was a staple of the Portland indie scene. They toured across the U.S. and Canada, and shared stages with The Killers and Franz Ferdinand. But, encouraged by his Kiwi friends The Mint Chicks, Vogel started his solo project to release music not fitting this band project.
In 2013, Vogel stepped away from music and moved to New Zealand to focus on family and teaching. Aside from a brief stint as Kody Nielson’s saxophonist and an appearance at Rodney Fisher’s Kingsland Folk Club, he kept his songs to himself – until an old friend gave him the push needed for Vogel to send a few songs to Home Alone Records for consideration.
Jen’s Dad’s Telescope “starts with a memory from a school holiday science programme a friend’s dad ran. It’s sort of about feeling insignificant. There’s a bit about an alien picnic and the line that “all I do is blended with a pixel’s width of light that left the earth in a time I wasn’t dead.” The second verse I wrote after I went to a concert by myself. I was waiting for the band to play listening to everyone talk. Without context and only snippets, it all feels a bit pointless. It’s the same idea as the first verse.”
The new album, pastor al, is a departure from the lo-fi jangle pop of early IYC. Built around Vogel’s intricate fingerpicking, it layers strings, glitchy atmospherics, and electronic flourishes.
pastor al, performed, recorded, and mixed by Bret Vogel, is a tight and playfully introspective album. With short, focused songs, it explores themes of isolation and change – likely heightened by Vogel’s move to NZ. Still, IYC doesn’t take itself too seriously, with musings on arctic outposts and floral-shirted bus drivers. Inspired by ’70s folk and odd tunings, Vogel’s Chilton-esque voice forms the center of a record that sits comfortably with Mercury Rev, Phoebe Bridgers, or Sufjan Stevens.
