colored vinyl version - Hugo Manuel is better known by his musical alias Chad Valley. A product of Oxfords prolific creative community, Chad Valley has amassed a catalogue that spans four studio releases, numerous collaborations and dozens of remixes. His 2010 self-titled debut laid the groundwork for 2011s Equatorial Ultravox, which gave his downtempo productions a decidedly more pop-leaning twist.
It was with Equatorial Ultravox that Chad Valleys profile sprung forward, strengthened by a string of key touring slots supporting the likes of Erasure, CHVRCHES, Twin Shadow, Active Child and Passion Pit. In 2013, Chad Valley released his first proper album, Young Hunger, which saw him fully embrace his pop ambitions. The album also featured an impressive list of collaborators including El Perro Del Mar, Glasser, Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs and Twin Shadow.
Two years later, Chad Valley delivered his sophomore album, Entirely New Blue. Working with producer Joel Ford (How To Dress Well, Autre Ne Veut), the record was a yet another step forward for Manuel, with international acclaim from the likes of SPIN, Gorilla vs. Bear, & Fader. For the making of his new record, Manuel returned home to Oxford with the goal of understanding the secret of timeless pop music. New album Imaginary Music channels the hyper-romantic music of the 80s, drawing inspiration from the sometimes-esoteric pop of Prefab Sprout and China Crisis, as well as bombastic acts like Toto and Heart.
Unlike the guest-laden Young Hunger and co-produced Entirely New Blue, the making of the album was an almost completely solitary exercise, allowing Manuel to fully embody the imagined pop artist in his minds eye. Imaginary Music includes the previously released singles Up Again and LA in August, both of which bolster one of the strongest batches of material Chad Valley has yet delivered.
| A1 | Dance With Me? |
| A2 | Hold Somebody |
| A3 | Impartial |
| A4 | L.A. In August |
| A5 | See-Through |
| B1 | Up Again |
| B2 | Unknown Ballad |
| B3 | ABC |
| B4 | Empire State |
| B5 | 10 Minutes |
| B6 | Minneapolis |
