Name: Silver Ladders
Brand: Mary Lattimore

Bonus disc

Bonus disc: No

Catalogue number

GI370LPC5

{"blocks": [{"data": {"text": "GI370LPC5"}, "type": "paragraph"}]}

Colour

Silver

Colour details

Metallic Silver

{"blocks": [{"data": {"text": "Metallic Silver"}, "type": "paragraph"}]}

Discogs ID

Format multiplier

Download code

Download code: No

Rough Trade Exclusive

Rough Trade Exclusive: No

Extended format

Extended format: Yes

Format detail

LP++

{"blocks": [{"data": {"text": "LP++"}, "type": "paragraph"}]}

Format Music GB

Limited edition

Release date

2021-04-30

Signed copies

Signed copies: No

Supplier GB

Tax rate GB

Standard:20

UPC / Barcode

0804297837079

{"blocks": [{"data": {"text": "0804297837079"}, "type": "paragraph"}]}

Total Cap

1 / Extended format: Yes / LP / Rough Trade Exclusive: No / Signed copies: No / silver

Artist

Mary Lattimore

Genre GB

Modern Composition

Label GB

Ghostly International

Ghostly International is a renowned music label based in Brooklyn, New York City. Established in 1999 by Samuel Valenti IV, the label has become a prominent figure in the electronic music scene. With its diverse roster of talented artists and innovative releases, Ghostly International continues to push boundaries and shape the future of music.

Over the years, Ghostly International has garnered a reputation for its distinct sound and commitment to quality. The label's catalog spans various genres including electronic, ambient, techno, and experimental music. From established acts to emerging talents, Ghostly International consistently delivers exceptional musical experiences that captivate listeners worldwide.

With its headquarters situated in one of the world's most vibrant cities for music and culture, Ghostly International draws inspiration from the dynamic energy of New York City. The label's forward-thinking approach coupled with its dedication to artistic integrity has earned it widespread acclaim and a loyal fanbase.

Mary Lattimore is an American harpist known for her mesmerizing and ethereal compositions. With a unique blend of classical training and experimental techniques, she has captivated audiences around the world with her enchanting performances.
Her music effortlessly transports listeners to otherworldly realms, evoking a sense of tranquility and introspection. Drawing inspiration from nature and her own personal experiences, Mary's compositions are both deeply emotive and beautifully intricate.
With numerous critically acclaimed albums under her belt, Mary Lattimore continues to push the boundaries of what can be achieved with the harp. Her innovative approach to the instrument has earned her recognition as one of the most talented and influential musicians in contemporary music.

Check out our latest restocks of vinyl records, CDs, books and merchandise at Rough Trade. Dive into rare finds, classic albums and add something special to your collection.

Back In Stock

Los Angeles-based harpist Mary Lattimore returns with Silver Ladders, the full-length follow-up to acclaimed album Hundreds of Days. Since 2018, Lattimore has toured internationally, released collaborative albums with artists such as Meg Baird and Mac McCaughan, and shared a friends-based remix album featuring artists such as Jónsi and Julianna Barwick. At one of her festival appearances, Lattimore met Slowdive’s Neil Halstead: “A friend introduced us because she knew how big of a fan I was and Neil and I had a little chat... The next day, I just thought maybe he’d be into producing my next record.” He was. Lattimore traditionally records her albums holed up by herself, so the addition of Halstead’s touches as a producer and collaborator leave a profound trace. “I flew on a little plane to Newquay in Cornwall where he lives with his lovely partner Ingrid and their baby. I didn’t know what his studio was like, he’d never recorded a harp, but somehow it really worked.”

Recorded over nine days at Halstead’s studio stationed on an old airfield, Silver Ladders finds Lattimore exercising command and restraint. Her signature style is refined, the sprawling layers of harp reigned in and accented by flourishes of low end synth and Halstead’s guitar. The music can feel ominous but not by compromising vivid wonder, like oceanic overtones that shift with the tides. This material is coloured by specific memories for Lattimore; “Neil has this poster of a surfer in his studio and I’d look at it each day, looking at the sunlight glinting on the dark wave. In these songs I like the contrast between the dark lows and the glittering highs. The gloom and the glimmer, the opposites, a lively surfing town in the winter turned kinda rainy and empty and quiet.”

Lattimore and Halstead reformed three existing demos and improvised the remaining four songs. Among the batch she brought with her, the title track recalls a trip she took to Stari Grad, Croatia on the island of Hvar. “I spent some days there just swimming in the bay, silver ladders right into the sea.” The image stuck with her when she found herself performing at a cliffside wedding overlooking the Pacific. “Before anyone showed up, I had time to set up and play and this song came to me, ‘Silver Ladders (to the sea)’, so I made a little recording on my phone to remember it.” This sketch expanded; a delicately glittering harp melody comes over the horizon, swelling and rolling towards the shore on ebbs of synth and refractory delay. 

These songs are clearly tales, and yet Silver Ladders is open to interpretation. Her memories — “the Cornish landscape, the hotel from the movie The Witches, the cream tea, winning the pub quiz, the Sunday Roast, the ghosts of all of the surfers who had died in the wild waves, the night walks to the top of the hill to see the moon shining on the water…” — shine through these works without defining them. In a way, much like the sea, or the sky, they belong to everyone. Such is the beauty of her craft, which stands here in unprecedented company and clarity, the confidence of an artist in full.

Silver Ladders

Music GB

Buy Mary Lattimore - Silver Ladders (Vinyl, CD) now from Rough Trade - independent purveyors of great music, since 1976.