For the past ten years, Josh Hwang has released music as CASTLEBEAT, an indie pop project producing jangling indie pop tunes with an undercurrent of bittersweetness. Now, nearly a decade after his debut self-titled album, Hwang has released “This Takes Time”, the first single from CASTLEBEAT II.
The new track is a taste of what’s to come on CASTLEBEAT II: Shimmering soundwaves underneath a layer of homebrewed haze, much like the recordings that started it all on his first full-length album back in 2016. “I intentionally limited myself to the kinds of sounds and choices I would’ve made back then,” Hwang says, “just with a more dialed-in approach I’ve developed over the years.”
Indeed, while Hwang returned to archived musical ideas for the new album and recorded them DIY-style, it’s easy to hear the polish on the tracks from the professional mixing and mastering. “This Takes Time” stands as a testament to having patience with art: Ten years down the road, CASTLEBEAT shines brighter than ever without losing what made its music special in the first place.
Take a listen to “This Takes Time” below, and be on the lookout for CASTLEBEAT II, coming through May through Hwang’s Spirit Goth Records.
Written by Will Sisskind
