Directly following his recent release âAir Conditioned Gypsyâ, its successor finds the alias of actor, writer, and musician Alexander Gold applying his Midas touch for 3 ½ minutes of lustrous harmonies and vintage guitar tones… With a little help from XTC legend Andy Partridge.
Inspired by a tale of fate, changing fortunes and finding yourself at a time when the odds are seemingly stacked against you; âGolden Numberâ is a song about luck, just when it feels like itâs all running out…
With theatres and gig venues closed, 2020 has been the year from hell for those in the creative arts. And like many creatives Gold found his world suddenly turned upside down.
âIâd just been flown home from tour, in the Caribbean, of all places. Literally paradise on Earth: then the world went to pandemic stations and we were all boxed up and flown back to grey old London at a momentâs notice: a London so ghostly and unpopulated it felt like Iâd never been there before.â
Alexander Gold
Faced with great uncertainty for the future of his career and with pressures mounting from a number of personal troubles at home, Gold decided to put his everything into his art instead. Taking the leaden troubles that were weighing him down and transforming them into platinum style of pop, Gold hit upon âGolden Numberâ; a winning new track that immediately felt like his fortunes were about to change.Â
âThere was really only one thing to do: make art⌠And along came Golden Number, which just sort of fell out. I really believe it was a gift – a sonic flat-pack of love and light. It gave me my hope back.â
And so Gold refound his mojo, but also an incredible streak of luck. Sending the track to friend and supporter Mark Ellen, the legendary music journalist and broadcaster drew a comparison to new wave legends XTC. Seeing it as a sign, Gold then reached-out to the bandâs iconic singer Andy Partridge for validation. To his surprise, Partridge called him back immediately and even offered his services as a producer and editor-in-absentia from then on…
âWe spent about two hours on the phone just talking about songwriting as a science as well as an art and he gave me some âhomeworkâ in which I was instructed to basically rip the arse out of Golden Number to make it – in Andyâs words – âOlympic Fit. No Fatâ. So I did. Then the craziest thing ever happened…â
âŚ. as if all that wasnât enough, the song then inspired a Darling BOY golden pilsner in Argentina. Upon hearing the refreshing sounds of Goldâs latest work, the New Doom brewery in Buenos Aires have commissioned a special âGolden Numberâ beer in its honour.
Fate, chance, luck, call it what you like – Darling BOY has clearly struck gold with his latest outing. A gift, from the universe, via Darling BOY, to you, âGolden Numberâ is released on 6th November 2020.Â