Band name: A Permanent Shadow
Number of members: 3
Hometown: Barcelona, Spain
Year formed: 2018
Genre(s): ELECTRONIC ROCK, POST PUNK
Latest release: We’ll Be one (Single out on June 5th)
Influences: David Bowie, Lou Reed, Iggy Pop, Nine Inch Nails, LCD Soundsystem
How did the band come together?
A Permanent Shadow is actually a solo project founded by CP Fletcher (me) who is aided by two producers and multi-instrumentalists, Valen Nieto and Albert Català. We had known each other for a while through other projects until we decided to work together on my own songs.
What is your proudest moment to date?
On our first album “Songs of Loss” we covered See the Lights by Simple Minds, and Jim Kerr himself sent us a thumbs-up via social media. Needless to say, Simple Minds fans hated our take, but Jim’s approval was worth much more than a thousand bedsit warriors’ rants.
What are the biggest challenges of being in an independent band?
Money, money and money. Few people talk about the financial aspects of running a band independently, but it really costs a lot of money if you want your recordings, videos, promo pics etc. to have a certain quality. Most of it is not recoupable under today’s circumstances.
What are your views on the impact of streaming on bands?
Streaming can be a good opportunity and a platform for you to get noticed, but unless we are talking about millions of streams, there’s very little money to be made from streaming. You make more from selling 100 vinyl albums than from 100,000 streams.
What’s next for the band?
We will have a new album out on early 2027. It’s called Half-Century Dead End and it’s already our fourth long play and dare we say, it’s our best yet!
Six of the best:
The Cult, UK
Hidden City, 2016
No one sounds like The Cult, and they’ve always maintained an incredible quality control on their recorded output. Their most recent records are as good as the classics.
The The, UK
Ensoulment, 2024
Matt Johnson writes the best lyrics ever, and the latest The The album, their first in almost 25 years, just proves that he has lost none of his wit.
Matthew Sweet, USA
Girlfriend, 1992
Matthew is going through a very rough patch after a severe stroke. I happily donated to his fundraiser as I can never thank him enough for his magnificent power-pop compositions. Get well soon, Matthew!
Morrissey, UK
Make-Up Is a Lie, 2026
Morrissey is such a divisive figure, and I find the Pavlovian reaction that some have at the mere mention of his name hilarious. That aside, his new album is awesome and who can really hold a candle to the man who wrote “There Is A Light That Never Goes Out”?
David Bowie, UK
Station to Station, 1976
I could mention any Bowie album, but I chose this one as it’s such a unique record. Six songs only, all of them utterly perfect. There is not a single note I would like to see changed on this record. The singing and playing are insane, especially on the title track, Stay and Nina Simone’s Wild Is The Wind. Never bettered. Not by Bowie, nor by anyone else.
Nine Inch Nails, USA
With Teeth, 2005
With Teeth doesn’t get mentioned much, as opposed to The Downward Spiral or Pretty Hate Machine, but it’s my absolute favourite NIN record. Trent Reznor is the new Bowie to me, always defying expectations and never standing still artistically speaking. His songs are so layered that it sometimes takes a few listens for me to like them, but once you’re inside his universe, you never want to leave again. A true genius.
