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On the tail of the release of their fourth album, New Zealand’s Pickle Darling reemerges with crumple zones, a companion EP that reimagines and expands upon the sonic world of Bots. While Bots was meticulously assembled, this new collection embraces a more immediate, live-inspired energy, offering alternate takes, acoustic reinterpretations, and a collaboration with Father/Daughter labelmate, Anna McClellan.
“massive everything (alternate version)” explores the ways we protect ourselves utilizing our emotional crumple zones. “The original version of the song is much more synthetic, but I recently discovered Nashville guitar tuning and was playing everything with that tuning. I wanted a lush, guitar filled version of this song to exist in the world too” shares Mayo. Delicate finger picking carries “human bean (alternate version),” a cute, stripped down rendition of the original. “pinwheels (featuring Anna McClellan)” is a long-awaited collaboration brought to life in a delightfully messy, acoustic-first approach. Anna’s vocals were recorded casually on a phone, background sounds intact, evoking a sense of immediacy and nostalgia, the kind of small, carb-filled comforts that define personal memory.
The EP also plays with the visual side of music-making: artwork inspired by layered woodcut prints explores alternative colors and textures, mirroring the experimental spirit of the songs themselves. Pickle Darling approaches this project as a weekend workshop rather than a full-length album’s labor, letting the process be playful, expansive, and free from pressure.
