An ample dose of funkiness to spice up your Indie playlist, ‘Cosmic Joke’ by Nottingham band Express Office Portico brings something new to a well-worn scene. Tongue-in-cheek with a hint of delectable Slacker-Rock, bubbling synth sounds and grooving basslines, the five-piece will have you hooked.
When discussing the latest release, the band share:
“‘Cosmic Joke’ came about by trying and failing to work out the chords to the 70s classic “I’d Rather Be with You” by Bootsy Collins. As big fans of artists immersed in RnB and Funk (Erykah Badu, Yellow Days, Steve Lacy), we began thinking, how would an Express Office Portico track with these accidental chords sound? Cosmic Joke evolved from there, with other influences such as Men I Trust, Beach House, Yellow Days, Rex Orange County & Mac Demarco adding to its creation.
We love comedians that go on long rants that are more like philosophical monologues than stand-up. Bill Hick’s famous “It’s Just a Ride” piece, is the perfect example. From here we decided on using this framing device for the track. The title comes from an idea in philosophy that the entire universe and life, in general, is just one big joke. A trick played on humanity by existence itself, or God, or whatever you wanna call it. “It’s all a cosmic joke, nothing less and nothing more”’…
They go on to say,
“The lyrics are essentially about having an existential crisis and the utter confusion of being a conscious human in the physical world. Everyone is searching for meaning, but life is fundamentally meaningless. So, we might as well just laugh about it all, and try to enjoy it as much as we can!”
With an impressive portfolio of live shows and support from major UK tastemakers, Express Office Portico are here to stay.
