LISTEN: Last Giant Shares “Feels Like Water”

The Portland, OR power trio’s new album, Monuments, due out June 2nd

May 4, 2023May 4, 2023 Ron Hart 0 Comments 2023, Adam Ant, Adam Pike, Feels Like Water, Last Giant, Matt Willes, Monuments, Oregon, Palmer Cloud, Portland, RFK Heise, Soundgarden

Portland, OR-based rock group Last Giant has just announced the release of their fourth album, Monuments, which comes out on June 2nd.

Recorded at Echo Echo Studios in Portland’s northeast industrial area with engineer Adam Pike (Red Fang, High on Fire), the journey to recording the new LP began with twin explosions of a 1970s Trident mixing console and a vintage Orange amp. Patching together what they could, they managed to lay down the bass and drum tracks before moving into LOABO HQ Studios (UTILITY, System and Station, John Amadon) in Portland to track the guitars. Keys and vocals, meanwhile, were tracked across the Northwest and Southern California in various closets, kitchens, empty corners and even inside cars.

Finally ready to mix, the first two mixing sessions were plagued with rushed schedules and lack of focus. Help came in the form of Paul Malinowski (Shiner, Riddle of Steel, Failure), a longtime friend and contributor, who took the songs where they needed to go and the mix was finished at Massive Studios in Kansas City, MO in January 2023. The album went through three mastering sessions, the third time landing with Stephan Hawkes (Gaytheist, Rise Records, Shelter Red) in North Hollywood as the winner.

Last Giant Monuments, LOABO Records 2023

After enduring such an arduous journey to create Monuments, the trio of RFK Heise (vocals, guitar, keys), Palmer Cloud (bass), and Matt Willes (drums) ended up with the best work of their careers, crafting a collection of songs that will appeal to fans of both Soundgarden and Adam Ant alike. And Rock & Roll Globe is honored to premiere one of the record’s hardest cuts in “Feels Like Water” today on the site.

“‘Feels Like Water’ is the big burner of the record,” Heise tells us. “Matt and I jammed through the main riff and I worked through the rest of the parts with the lyrics in mind. It’s about a body growing older as the mind stays young and the surrealism of aging. Come across someone like water flowing. The body can sometimes be our only proof of time.”

Since rising from the ashes of former Northwest indie-rock heavy-hitters System and Station (1998-2013), Last Giant has slowly but surely established themselves as one of the bold new voices in the region’s historic pedigree of loudness. And if you don’t believe me, just give a listen to “Feels Like Water” below.

Monuments will be distributed via The Orchard and released by indie label Little One Ate the Big One.