Ships Have Sailed

Ships Have Sailed’s powerful new single opens with a group of high school graduates looking at their futures. “Anyone can go to college and party their ass off, but then what do you do?” one guy asks his friends. “You’re done; you go work in an office the rest of your life?” The cohort laughs at his conviction, but they all express uncertainty about the path ahead. ““I don’t know what I’m doing tomorrow, let alone the rest of my life,” someone else says.

How can anyone know what tomorrow will bring? How can we be so certain that we are on the right path – and why do we focus so much on tomorrow, rather than today? A third friend puts it best as the music bubbles up to the surface: “All we have left is the summer, and it’s going to be gone before we know it.”

Ships Have Sailed’s “Let’s Just Dance” is a euphoric anthem basking in the moment, celebrating the here and now and embracing the life we’re living today for all it’s worth.
You know your limits and when to call it quits
But I’m a sucker for the things that I think I could have missed
I love to stay up, make up, conversations with the stars,
see the glow on the horizon as we kiss away the dark.
So why would we close our eyes?

Atwood Magazine is proud to be premiering “Let’s Just Dance,” the euphoric new single from Los Angeles band Ships Have Sailed. The follow-up to 2017’s feelgood call-to-action “Up” finds the duo of Will Carpenter (guitar/vocals) and Art Andranikyan (drums) reveling in exuberant indie pop – filling the space with palpable warmth and light. And while their Michael Easterling-directed, Jaala Ruffman-produced video gives us the story of five high school grads on the brink of transition, “Let’s Just Dance” applies to all of us, no matter our stage or place in life.

Because we’re all here, in the moment – living right now – and we ought to take advantage of that.

Let’s just dance…
let’s just dance all night.
Come on, come on,
come on, come on
let me steal your heart away

“‘Let’s Just Dance’ is a dreamy, exuberant swirl of emotions…disguised as a whimsical love song,” Will Carpenter tells Atwood Magazine. “I wanted to dive a little deeper and explore the struggle of always wanting more, no matter what you already have, which I think is almost a feature of the human condition. At the same time, I wanted to break new ground musically, and reach for some new areas of my songwriting palette… ultimately, this track surpassed my own expectations, and I can’t wait to see how people respond.”

Well Will, you’ve got our vote. “Let’s Just Dance” bundles emphatic joy in with nostalgia and hope, appreciation and love – it’s a smorgasbord of feelings we tend to shrug off during the day, but that come alive at night. Ships Have Sailed capture the uncertainty of the future with regrets from the past, boiling everything down into a song of celebration.

You can’t undo what’s already done, but you sure can make the most of the time you have. Carpenter lifts us up through vivid, resonant lyrics:
When you chase the stars you never know,
will it lift you high or swing you low,
Cheek to cheek, we’re toe to toe,
never gonna let you go.
Let’s just dance…let’s just dance all night.
We fit together, although it’s kinda strange,
We’re like random puzzle pieces somehow perfectly arranged.
It’s amazing, baby, that our differences align
And we make each other better when we’re seeing eye to eye
In the moment we’re so sublime

It’s easy to appreciate life’s changes through the lens of an eighteen-year-old: For many in the United States, 18 is the first taste of independence. You’ve moved up the ladder in high school, finally getting to the top and exiting on a high note. You’re staring into the unknown, having supposedly learned everything you could from your former teachers, your family and guardians, and the world you’ve always known. What lies ahead is a total mystery – and of course, as anyone who’s gone through this experience can attest, it turns out you knew nothing, and you were likely more unprepared than you could have dreamed.

But as you’re standing there on the brink, leaving the privileged safety and sanctuary of your youth and headed toward adulthood at a rapid clip, it’s all you can do to take a breath and enjoy every second. And so Ships Have Sailed introduce us to five friends, portrayed by Luke Viole, Zarah Ruffman, Hunter Martinez, Clarity Ruffman, and Darshana Ruffman, having the time of their lives. Whether you’re a younger viewer watching this video and thinking about your own future, or an older viewer whose teenage years feel like another lifetime, we can all relate to “Let’s Just Dance” and the feeling it inspires. Ships Have Sailed implore us to live – to love every second of our world, to grab life by the horns and make every single day count!

“Let’s just dance – let’s just dance all night,” Will Carpenter sings. “Chasing stars is all I know, but you make me feel invincible. Cheek to cheek, we’re toe to toe, so don’t let go and let’s dance…“
Stream “Let’s Just Dance” exclusively on Atwood Magazine, and remember to live in the moment; it’s all you’ve got. - Atwood Magazine

Los Angeles-based alternative electro-pop trio Ships Have Sailed first surfaced in 2014 with the release of their well-received EP, Someday. Following the success of their debut, band members Will Carpenter, Mike Odabashian, and Dan Hange wasted no time in continuing the collaboration to produce their first full length project, the recently released Mood Swings. A showcase of indie pop mastery, Mood Swings is an 11 track roller coaster ride of a story from beginning to end.

Mood Swings opens perfectly with Drive. Compelled by a brooding vocal that conveys desire against a sort of overall celestial feel, it almost inspires listeners to escape into the sunset with their favorite person next to them after one listen. But just as you have settled into your fantasies of getting away from it all, Ships Have Sailed make a musical u-turn and you suddenly find yourself in the middle of the youthful, anthemic Summertime before moving on to the chime seducing and emotional Out of Time. If Only is a rhythmic foot tapping song with a strong guitar accompaniment that continues to play on one of the themes of working through regret before the band closes out the first half by taking the retro sounding route with Boomerang.

The second half of Mood Swings begins with the introspective Criminal which looks at questioning who you really are deep within. The music is mystical and the use of drums highly effective making me wish there was more to this interlude type two minute track. As the title of the release indicates, it doesn’t take long before Ships Have Sailed is changing moods again with The Tide, an uptempo track that seems to draw on the parallels between the ebb and flow of the ocean and the highs and lows brought on by life’s inevitable changes. Keeping a similar style, You Should Know is a complete song both in verse and the music which is primarily defined by its skillful guitar and drum playing. The band then brings the tempo back down for one of my favorite tracks of this release, Insomnia. A clock ticking sound in the background gives way to the lyrics, “It should be easier to find, elusive piece of mind, but as we close our eyes, how much can we leave behind?” The brief and sad sounding Echoes is true to its title with an undertone to the vocals before the band appropriately closes out their Mood Swings journey with Imaginary Friend. Despite what seems like a contradiction between the sound and the lyrics, this mid-tempo, head bop inducing pop song will have you whistling right along with it as it goes on to say, “When it comes right down, sometimes you’re the only friend I want around.”

On their first full length release and the sophomore follow up to Someday, Ships Have Sailed show a remarkable growth in musical maturity with Mood Swings. The range of creativity that is showcased with this latest work demonstrates a legitimate love of music that will not be constrained by any thing that may try to keep it inside one specific sound. With a collection of songs that mix traditional instruments with just enough electro-influence to make things interesting, along with a bounce between somber and celebratory lyrics, this release should open the door for Ships Have Sailed to widen their appeal among the masses. If you love the indie music scene and discovering truly talented young bands with limitless potential, these are your guys and this is the album to buy. With Mood Swings, Ships Have Sailed has returned to port and will be sticking around for the foreseeable future.

Mood Swings was released March 10th and is available on iTunes. - Indie Minded

Los Angeles pop rock favorites Ships Have Sailed are back with their new full length, Moodswings. Their sound has grown an awful lot since their debut EP, Someday, and they have pulled out all the stops on this album. Ships Have Sailed create light, breezy pop that still manages to be quite weighty at its core, straddling alternative, R&B, pop, and even hints of electronica at the same time.

The band has intended the album to be listened to as a complete experience from top to bottom; a loose concept based upon the idiom they get their own band name from. But while it does certainly work as a singular unit, it’s also much easier to break up into smaller digestible bites than other concept pieces like Tommy or The Wall. Moodswings was designed as a concerted effort to be without detachable singles, but it still contains incredibly catchy pop songs with huge hooks like “Summertime” or “Boomerang.”

Almost every song invariably builds to a tremendous rising crescendo whether it be slowly and steady like “Insomnia” or right from the off like the anthemic “If Only,” seemingly purpose built for audiences to sing and clap along to. But one of the album’s greatest moments is actually its most introspective. The album closer “Imaginary Friend” trades the bombastic electric guitars for acoustic ones, and although it does grow in size towards the end, it stays at a relatively even pace. It’s quieter, pensive, and undeniably charming like one of Paul Westerberg’s heartsick love songs.

Ships Have Sailed showed a lot of promise on their EP, and they have not disappointed with this album. Moodswings is a massive step up for the band and an amazingly well rounded collection. It carries with it a cohesive, solidified identity, finally allowing the band to stand out on their own. Moodswings will be out March 10th. - The Big Takeover

In just under two months, Los Angeles trio Ships Have Sailed will release their juggernaut of an alt-rock debut album Moodswings. The band, which was formed by the guitarist of hip hop outfit 7 lions, take their name from the phrase "that ship has sailed" which is the narrative running throughout Moodswings. You can get a taste of that by streaming the premiere of their single 'If Only' below, which reminisces on lost loves and the hope for winning them back, and eventually coming to terms with the fact that it might not happen. Complete with bombastic drums, an epic guitar solo, and just-rugged-enough vocals, it's a massive tune that'll have you keeping it on repeat. - The 405

When LA alt-pop trio Ships Have Sailed’s new album Moodswings got to me (or I should say, when I finally got to my email) most of the songs had already been premiered. Early bird truly does get the worm. But I soon found that it was all okay, because every track is worth reviewing.

Ships Have Sailed is the rare case of a band name embodying its sound. Their melodies soar effortlessly and their inspired, rounded resonance reminds me of 90s alt-rock bands that have since gone out to sea (RIP Something Corporate) or mainstream Christian rock power players (looking at you, Hillsong United).

“Out of Time” starts with twinkly piano and vocals waxing poetic. The drum joins the laud, gaining momentum with a systematic beat and synthesized background, leading to a punchy, staccato chorus, “I will not leave you / I won’t forget you / I want to let you in,” oddly reminiscent of Donna Lewis’s “I love you / always forever/ near and far / closer together.” (Did you think you were going to see that reference in this review?)

The favorite, relatable lyrics, “Funny how the scars on our hearts are eclipsed by the stars in our eyes / I just want to hold you until the world runs out of time” really communicate the feel of the track. It's light-heartedly poignant, poppy, and puts a pep in my step. And it makes me feel like running into Prince Charming's arms isn't entirely just a fabrication of fairytales.

Check out the group at the links below & purchase their album Moodswings (out March 10) here. - Earmilk

Ah, the classic story of a musician deviating from his bread and butter to follow his own tuneful vision. While conceiving this dreamy SoCal pop lullaby that is Someday, Will Carpenter, the brains behind Ships Have Sailed, was guitarist for hip-hop rockers 7Lions, a role he still holds steady today. In hip-hop, however, there’s little room for ethereal synthesizers, so Carpenter joined forces with writer/producer Morgan Taylor Reid and, voila, Ships Have Sailed was born.

On Someday, the collective’s first six-song EP, Carpenter’s “other side” runs wild with gorgeous — and substantial — tracks. “Midnight” is a pop anthem the likes we haven’t seen in awhile. No, it’s not some petri-dish Katy Perry soundalike garbage, but a real, audience-shaking, shout-along cry that is accessibly hip. Meanwhile, “Bring You Down” is an honest confession. As dark and painfully relatable as the lyrics are, the melody is earwormingly catchy. The entire Someday EP bridges ready-for-radio sounds with enough punch to maintain its indie cred.

This is just the beginning for Ships Have Sailed. A number of the artists I’ve covered recently have emerged from the once-again burgeoning LA music scene, proving that SoCal still has soul — and lots of it. Will Carpenter is proof that it’s possible to remain true to yourself musically, and when you do, good things happen. - Pop Dose

“Like a boat at sea, there are infinite directions our lives can take and every choice we make effects the trajectory of the course we’re on.”

These are the opening sentiments offered on the profile page of Los Angeles power pop band, Ships Have Sailed. First blush intuits that these lines, well, don’t say much. They could be attached willy-nilly to any old rock record.

One listen to the self-released EP Someday though lets you know that these words are not mere platitudes. They represent the beating heart of bassist and band founder Will Carpenter’s zeitgeist. His gently constructed songs, all rotate lyrically around the premise that small choices in life lead to grandiose results.

The first of the six tracks “Midnight” blows up in a resplendent chorus, gorgeous songwriting that inspires all of the gravitas of an Act II romantic comedy. Picture the film’s hero. He’s running through the rain beneath the streetlights as you turn the volume up on “Just To Get Through”. Seen that moment? There you’ve found what Carpenter is trying to achieve: the pure seizure of moments.

Perhaps the only quibble in Someday is lack of grit. The subject matter is metamorphosis but I struggle to feel that punch. There isn’t much to call raw on the six-track EP, definitely more quibble than flaw. Delightfully polished indie pop woven of this splendid material more than makes amends. - Bearded Magazine

Last Wednesday night, I had the pleasure of seeing the LA based band Ships Have Sailed play in Boston. You may remember them from a few months back when I featured their song ‘Midnight’ as a Tuesday Tune. Headlining a show at Johnny D’s in Somerville, Ships Have Sailed brought their Midnight Tour to the east coast. In a comfortable and laid back venue, with a beer and my camera in hand, the show did not disappoint. The band opened with their hit single ‘Midnight’, a move most bands would save until the end. I appreciated the change. Along with other tunes off of their Someday EP, covers from Lorde and Lit also found a place in their set list. You gotta love a good mash-up! After the show, I spoke briefly with the band’s front man Will Carpenter. Carpenter is well spoken, and humble when speaking about his band, tour, and previous ties to Boston.

Overall, the night was a great success. The band played an awesome show, and I was happy and honored to be a part of it. Thank you again to Ships Have Sailed! You can find their Someday EP out now on iTunes! - Morning Glory Blog

With the release of their debut EP, ‘Someday’, LA-based alternative pop-rock collective Ships Have Sailed have embarked on their maiden voyage. For a relatively new band, the group delivers an incredibly well executed set of songs which introduces the world to their vibrant brand of Alternative Pop.

Their single ‘Midnight’ emerges out of a haze of golden tremolo, dancing on an electronic ska upbeat that builds into an enormous chant-worthy chorus. The song showcases the bands heady grasp on standard rock dynamics while pulling vibrant electronic sounds into the picture. It is a meaty piece of contagious indie pop so don’t be surprised if you find yourself humming along by the breakdown.

If their streamlined foray onto the world stage seems a bit effortless, it might be comforting to know the bands captain Will Carpenter cut his teeth for years in the hip hop rock outfit 7Lions. When this batch of songs emerged, Carpenter simply had to invent a new outlet to channel his more pop-centric material and Ships Have Sailed was born.

Ships Have Sailed will be playing a select amount of key shows on the West Coast of the U.S. this summer with plans to record a full length later this year. - Awedio Hub

Ships Have Sailed, with Will Carpenter at the helm, is a name which promises songs of maturity and self-awareness, and this Los Angeles-based outfit delivers. Named Someday, their debut EP (nationally released 15th July, 2014) contains six tracks that carry me along willingly on a wave of indie pop. The song’s influences come from more than one wellspring, and there is a pleasing variety here. Will Carpenter started playing instruments when still very young, listening to musical greats from the 1960s and ’70s before discovering angst-ridden grunge in the ’90s. A multi-instrumentalist, he plays the violin, bass guitar, and electric guitar. He is also a member of rock/hip hop band, 7Lions. Will wanted another musical project for a set of songs which are different to the 7Lions output. The result is Ships Have Sailed.

All the songs here are either written by or co-written by Will Carpenter. First track on the EP (and the debut single) is titled Midnight. It’s catchy, radio-friendly pop with soft vocals. Building to a rousing chorus, it’s the obvious choice for the single. The You Tube video for Midnight tells the tale of love and jealousy amongst circus folk. Clouds is a simple arrangement with sparse acoustic guitar and voice and is more in singer/songwriter territory. Lovely parental sentiments are expressed – clouds on water, sons and daughters, don’t you falter. Bring You Down returns to more familiar pop material, but still in thoughtful mode, with a slightly Coldplay feel. With a driving beat and rock guitar, Better Off is a heavier song – conceivably, heads could even be banged to this one. But we’re in the land of mellow California sunshine on Just To Get Through, with some nice harmonies. Someday is the final song and title track, with inventive percussive patterns, another rousing chorus and introspective lyrics - I feel like I’m living someone else’s life.

Good instrumentation, harmonies and arrangements pull the best from these songs. Ships Have Sailed are obviously not attempting to be trendy, and that always helps artists to have a longer career. The quality of the songs is the priority here – no tricks – just good craftsmanship and honesty. Their versatility also stands them in good stead, as they can go down different musical paths and grow.

Will Carpenter’s plan is to record a full-length album in 2014 involving collaborations with more producers and songwriters. - The Daily Opinion