The recording sessions for Ashes Grammar stretched across 6 months and were fraught with all kinds of disaster. But they were also incredibly productive. After the album’s completion, a good number of extra songs were put on the shelf for a while as the core trio of Ben Daniels, Annie Fredrickson and Josh Meakim reclaimed their lives. Not long after, Ben was laid off from his job and his afternoons were spent recording new music in the West Philly mansion where he was house sitting. Josh and Annie would come over often to record and hang out. Friendships were cemented. The first results of this wonderful time in ASDIG history are heard on the Nitetime Rainbows EP; an album of some of their brightest sounding songs to date. These are the sounds of a band falling in love, a band having fun.

“Nitetime Rainbows” always struck the band as a song that could be its own album, let alone EP/single. It was one of the most fun songs to record on Ashes Grammar, and it has the most elaborate and strange instruments on it– from vibes to lap steel to bulbul tarang. Its partner song, “Daytime rainbows,” was originally intended to appear on the full length but the band needed a bit more time to develop it. “So bloody, so tight” is one of the band’s absolute favorite songs they’ve recorded to date and it’s easy to hear why. The song is full of hope in a way the band has only hinted at previously. While the vocals are still low in the mix, the lyrics for this song are the first the band has ever shared. “Piano lessons” was the result of Ben, who cannot play the piano, sitting at the baby grand for many, many hours one night. By the end of the night he was deliriously pounding the keys, mashing as many as he could with his palms flat. The experience made him wish he hadn’t given up piano lessons when he was 12 and it also revealed some beautiful noise in the banging. The EP also features three remixes by label friends Benoît Pioulard, Ezekiel Honig and The Buddy System - each offering wholly unique interpretations of the title song. Artwork for the EP was contributed by Finnish artist Jaakko Mattila, whose artwork previously appeared on the CD and LP versions of Ashes Grammar.

Fresh off the success of Ashes Grammar, which was listed at #42 on Pitchfork’s Top 50 of 2009 year end list and their fall tour, the band looks ahead to a promising 2010. Ben, Annie, and Josh were joined by band newcomers Jen Goma, Adam Herndon and Ryan Newmyer during their fall tour and will continue touring across North America and Europe throughout the spring. 2010 will also mark the band’s debut at the annual South by Southwest festival in Austin, TX in March.