Boston mod-pop trio delivers a livewire sophomore album fit for a spring scooter ride out Friday, May 1 on CD and digital via Rum Bar Records
There are few feelings that can beat those first few days of spring, when the weather lures us outside, every day feels like the weekend, and all of life’s stresses and frustrations quickly fade away. The Chelsea Curve are living for those moments, and have now provided a proper soundtrack for us to take with us on our journeys.
Getting into the energetic season, the Boston mod-pop trio unleashes sophomore album The Rideout on Friday, May 1 on CD and digital via Rum Bar Records, and it’s a frenzied celebration of living in the moment, taking life head-on, and raising a glass to the good times, wherever we may find them.
Its title taken directly from scooter culture parlance that inspires the band’s ethos, style, and sound, The Rideout features seven hyperactive tracks, compiling three 2025 singles (“Kindawanna,” “Never Come Down,” and “Rally ‘Round”) with flashy new anthemic belter “Ride” and three new tracks in “Outta My Head,” “I Can’t Help It,” and “In Real Life.”
The record was hyped by WBUR, Boston’s NPR, as one of the most anticipated albums coming out of New England this spring, and should sound both lively and lovely when the band hits the stage May 9 for The Northern Line’s EP release party at Medford Brewing Company, and then June 12 when they party with The Gruesomes, Muck and the Mires, and co-conspirator DJ Sherman at The Burren in Somerville.
In one sense, The Rideout is classic Chelsea Curve, with the trusted trio of Linda Pardee (bass, vocals, keys), Tim Gillis (guitars, vocals, keys), and recent recruit Bruce Caporal (drums and percussion) delivering the next aural wave where British indie and mod culture intertwine with stateside power-pop, punk, and college rock for a hyper-infectious and melodic embrace. But it also explores some new sonic territory, with a more layered and textured sound without losing any of the grit and spunk that first lit their spark a few years back.
“We’re putting the ‘power’ in the ‘pop’ with this one,” says Gillis. “All these songs together in one place are pretty relentless. We’re really happy with the combination of punch and polish.”
Produced by The Chelsea Curve, The Rideout was recorded and mixed by Mike Quinn at a trio of Eastern Massachusetts hotspots in Allston’s Mad Oak Studios; Bluetone Studio in Somerville; and Boston’s The Record Company. It was mastered by Dave Locke / JP Masters in Seattle, Washington.
In just under 20 minutes of fast and easy mod-pop action, The Chelsea Curve have issued a call to get up, get out, and embrace the world around us. The sentiment has a particularly special meaning for the band, who in recent years have navigated some health issues, various personal setbacks, and a lineup shift (bringing in Caporal to round things out without missing a beat) that would sink a lesser band.
“This record is about living for the moment, being with your people and just enjoying life,” says Pardee. “Yeah, kind of corny, but life’s way too short to be precious.”
That shines true especially in the opening track “Ride,” a livewire single with the familiar Chelsea Curve trust n’ thrust that’s all about jumping into life feet-first, paying tribute to the band’s deep affinity and connection to scooter culture. Early reviews have likened it to The Who — and that’s a more than welcome reference.
“My favorite line of this record,” Pardee notes, “is ‘Everyone’s on the floor, in the moment now, cuz this is what it’s all about’ from ‘Ride.’ It nicely sums up this record for me.”
Last summer, the band hopped across the Atlantic over to England to play the Mod Weekender in Brighton and the world’s largest scooter rally on the Isle of Wight, all while trading tours and shows over the past few years with English band brethren like Sharp Class and The Len Price 3. The Chelsea Curve have embraced their subculture – and the subculture has embraced them right back.
“I’ve been on this course since seeing Quadrophenia as a teenager,” Pardee adds. “The idea of not just looking sharp, but having a look stuck with me. Of course, we never expected to be embraced by the scooter scene as hard as we have. We connected with the Boston Stranglers scooter club through our mate DJ Sherman, and played a few of their rallies — which led to an invitation to the High Rollers rally in Vegas which led to an invitation to play the world’s largest scooter rally on the Isle of Wight. It’s been quite a ride – see what I did there!
The ride to the release of The Rideout began last summer, when fresh off a new 7-inch, the band began unveiling a series of singles – not unlike the 2021 Singles Scene, where eight new monthly tracks would go on to form the foundation of the following year’s debut record All The Things, which got the re-issue treatment as All The Things (And More) just last year due to high demand and continued interest.
The swing began with restless powderkeg bop “Kindawanna,” a frenetic ripper of summer escapism that encouraged us all to pop bottles of Prosecco and take a joyride on the Lambretta. It marked a new sound and vibe for the trio, something bigger, badder, and maybe even a bit goofier. But it encapsulated the spirit of “fun!” that has become a hallmark of their sound.
Next came “Never Come Down,” a searing banger that recalled late-’60s psychedelia and mid-’90s Britpop, swirling around a theme of wanderlust and freedom. It was a sonic shift for the band, a zig to the zag that moved and shook like the curvy roadway just north of Boston that lends the band its moniker.
“It’s about the ultimate feeling of being free,” says Gillis. “I mean, who doesn’t want to feel free, unfettered, unbound? It’s about being up above it all, opening arms wide to possibilities, and expanding infinitely into forever – going where distractions are a distant memory. It’s pretty cosmic, and a little trippy. But it’s still got our sound wrapped around it; filled with some hooks, and always with some edge.”
The single trilogy wrapped with “Rally ‘Round,” a glistening cruiser about connection and community that was issued by The Sound Cove for their inaugural compilation. With a sugary-sweet embrace and a shimmering sound that connects a ‘60s folk-pop ethos with a college rock, jangle-pop, and C86 glide, and not to mention a bit of a melodic call-back to Boston’s mid-’90s indie scene, “Rally ‘Round” was another invitation from the band to its listeners.
“This song has morphed into a different meaning than what was originally intended when written,” admits Pardee. “The lyrics were initially about friendships, acquaintances, people coming into your life. Being part of a community. Finding your people. Despite differences, we can or should be able to at least co-exist. I realized that, since writing the lyrics, they may come across a little differently now given the current social climate, and that’s okay. It’s hard to be an optimist sometimes, but when I sing ‘We’re all on the same side’, I am thinking – at the very least, we are all humans.”
Among the new tracks, the rumbling “Outta My Head” captures the rowdiness of the band’s sound and packs it fist-first into a polished fit of uber-cool. “In Real Life” bridges the punk sounds of the debut record with the lyrical stylings of this album, and “I Can’t Help It” is a mod bruiser that toys with a playful seduction – not to mention a soaring chorus that recalls radio-ready ‘90s alt-rock – without ever losing its bite.
“Each song had a clear idea and sound in mind for what we wanted,” Pardee says. “For example, ‘Ride’ was our Who-meets-Len Price 3 song; ‘Outta My Head’ was our Paul Weller song; ‘I Can’t Help It’ was our Letters to Cleo homage. We just hammered away ‘til we were happy. And a lot more thought went into producing this bunch of songs for sure.”
From an enhanced use of keyboards and other musical accoutrements adding some pizzazz across each track, the gang vocals that permeate every wellplaced “hey!”, and the hand-claps that are favorites of the band on the record and by the crowd whenever they perform live, The Rideout continues The Chelsea Curve legacy of optimistic infectiousness.
It’s just what we need as we embrace spring in the most difficult of times. The Rideout is an invite to come along for the journey, and to enjoy some upbeat mod-inspired tunes soundtracking our very own, from here to anywhere.
“We’re playing fewer shows this year, so catch us when we pop up,” Pardee concludes. “I’m focused on being even more involved with supporting and expanding our not-so-under-the-radar Cool Bostonia scene. And of course, our UK mod brother band Sharp Class will be back over for a set of dates with us in the fall!”
By then, our collective motors will be fully running.
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The Chelsea Curve are:
Linda Pardee: Bass, vocals, keyboards
Tim Gillis: Guitars, vocals, keyboards
Bruce Caporal: Drums, vocals, shaker, tambourine
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‘The Rideout’ production credits:
Music by The Chelsea Curve
Lyrics by Linda Pardee except “Never Come Down” by Tim Gillis and “Rally ‘Round” by Linda Pardee and Tim Gillis
“Rally ‘Round” courtesy of The Sound Cove
Recorded and mixed at Mad Oak Studios in Allston, MA; Bluetone Studio in Somerville, MA; and The Record Company in Boston, MA
Produced by The Chelsea Curve
Recorded and mixed by Mike Quinn
Mastered by Dave Locke / JP Masters, Seattle, WA
Design by Linda Pardee
Cover photo by Trebmal Photography
Inside photo by Reuben
Contact: thechelseacurve@gmail.com
Join our scene: @TheChelseaCurve on social media
©&• 2026 TCC Music • BMI/ASCAP
All rights reserved
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The Chelsea Curve 2026 bio:
The Chelsea Curve want to make you move. But how you do it is up to you. Inspired by Boston and British culture, the mod-pop trio switched on in 2020 with a singular mission to create infectious, punchy, sing-along rock and roll.
Armed with an arsenal of catchy tunes appealing to both the clubs and the pubs, and properly bonded over a love of ‘70s punk and the mod style and sound, The Chelsea Curve are Linda Pardee (bass/vocals), Tim Gillis (guitar/vocals), and Bruce Caporal (drums/vocals). A series of eight monthly singles in 2021, aptly titled The Singles Scene, led to the band’s 2022 debut album All The Things (Red on Red Records), which earned global press and radio airplay, including regular spins on SiriusXM’s Underground Garage.
From there, the stages grew larger, as did the crowds: Playing Boston Calling Music Festival, skipping across the Atlantic for a UK tour, holding court at scooter rallies from Boston to Las Vegas. 2024 saw The Chelsea Curve play the 45th anniversary Mods Mayday show in London around a tour of England, as well as performing stateside with the UK’s Sharp Class and Norway’s The Cocktail Slippers.
The Chelsea Curve kicked off 2025 with a hit and run US West Coast tour (again with Sharp Class) and then jumped right into the studio to begin recording tracks for their new record. Freshly outfitted by 66 Clothing and Mod Shoes, the band is now looking and sounding sharper than ever! With new album The Rideout set for May 2026 release on Rum Bar Records, preceded by a string of three singles and a new mod-pop belter called “Ride,” The Chelsea Curve are quickly forging their own rock and roll path connecting the past to the present. And in their world, there is no standing still.
