Mark Mathews is no stranger to adventure - being someone that has climbed Mount Kilimanjaro, Trek’d the Inca trail and slept rough across Europe - but all these experiences have always been fuel to feed and inform his music. In 2008 he denied the trappings of modern life, packed a bag and his guitar and travelled the world for four years straight, experiencing nomadic life once again, playing with musicians in India, Nepal, Cambodia, Australia, America and eventually finding a studio in New Zealand where he wrote and recorded the Moments and Movements EP in 2012. He later released two singles (The critically acclaimed, ‘London Lives’ and ‘The Girl’) through the Animal Farm record label, before leaving them to set up his own label, Colossal Records - releasing the third single, Someone in 2014 and the, Misspent Future EP in 2015 on it. It was during this transgression between labels that Mark decided to fly to Peru to live with an Amazonian tribe in the jungle for nine days, drinking the powerful hallucinogenic plant medicine, Ayahuasca. What transpired was frightening, illuminating and life changing for Mark and it was after a particular moment whereby he saw and spoke with a giant anaconda sat in front of him, that he decided to write, The Raging Sea, his new album released on March 28th 2016. Mark said, “It was the fourth night I had drunk Ayahuasca and I was going through a bit of a personal hell. Ayahusaca brings you face to face with your demons and I was certainly seeing mine. I sensed that the Shamen was sat at my feet where I was lying, singing her Icaro to me and so I pulled myself up in the hope that she could help me. However, when I was eventually able to focus I saw a huge Anaconda sat there, staring at me. But instead of fear I felt overwhelming peace, an absolute harmony with everything. There was a kind of maternal love that engulfed me and this Snake, (or Mother Ayahusaca as the tribe would lead me to believe), was healing me. I was shown some truths, which I won’t share as they are too personal, but it was a life changing moment” Mark got a tattoo on his left wrist to remind him of this moment and he penned the new album tracks out in Peru. All except one, Turn it Around which was a track from the 2012, Moments and Movements sessions. Mark said, “Turn it around just fitted perfectly in the story. The song deals with waking up from sleepwalking through life and realising that time has moved on - You’ve rested on your laurels – but it’s not too late to change it, you can turn it around and have a fresh start. This experience was like an awakening, an opportunity to change and so it made sense to include it in the album. It’s one of my favourite tracks now!” Mark conceived and wrote the album in Peru, spent six months recording it in East London, had it mixed in Mexico and finally mastered it in Nashville, Tennessee. Mark pushed his signature sound to new areas of experimentation although he is quick to reassure his fans not to expect a World music flavour to the record: “I’m not going to be playing at WOMAD or anything with this album! I’ve pushed my sound and experimented a lot in the studio but it’s not got 8 minute pan pipe solos and bongo drums on the tracks! It’s still Indie-Pop that you can have a dance to!”