Losing Touch (Remastered) is the debut studio album by Empathy Test. Containing mostly remastered versions of tracks from Empathy Test's two 2014 EPs, Losing Touch and Safe From Harm, it was self-released simultaneously with the second album, Safe From Harm, via a PledgeMusic crowd funder in November 2017. The crowd funder, which had an initial goal of £4,000, ended 661% funded and raised over £26,000.

 

Losing Touch (Remastered) features title track Losing Touch, which remains Empathy Test's most popular track to date. If one includes both the original and remastered versions, it has had over 5m Spotify streams, as well as over a million views on YouTube. Losing Touch first gained international popularity when it was used by artists and animator Richard swarbrick as the soundtrack to an animated video he produced to celebrate Liverpool Football Club's 2013/14 season. The video has been watch 270K times and was featured on the club's own TV channel.

 

Losing Touch also featured in two episodes of Spanish language Netflix show Luis Miguel: La Serie, a biopic about the titular Mexican singer, alongside covers of the artists songs by the lead actor. Inspired by its use in Luis Miguel, Spanish actress Ester Exposito (best known for Netflix's Elite) also used Losing Touch as the soundtrack to an Instagram video for Dolce & Gabanna, which garnered 12m views.

 

Also included is Holding On (another member of the 1m+ Spotify streams club), live favourite Demons (1.6m Spotify streams), Kirrilee, which was used by artist Richard Swarbrick as the soundtrack to his viral animated video The Cats of YouTube and as the official soundtrack to the world famous Bill Murray art fair in San Francisco. The album was completed by previously unreleased tracks Siamese and Sleep.

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CAST & CREW

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All of the tracks on Losing Touch (Remastered) were written and recorded by founder members Isaac Howlett and Adam Relf, with all lyrics by vocalist Isaac Howlett. Adam Relf produced the album artwork, and did the mixing and mastering.

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FORMATS

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Losing Touch (Remastered) was originally self-released in digital, Digipak CD and 12" black vinyl formats. The first run of 500 Digipak CDs sold out before the end of the year and a second run of 1,000 was commissioned. The artwork of the second Digipak CD differed slightly from the first, including the same mountain design featured on the vinyl sleeve, on the back cover of the Digipak. The band went on to release a second limited edition run of 300 orange vinyl, a third of 300 white vinyl, and a final self-funded edition of 500 clear vinyl with an orange splatter.

 

After the second run of 1,000 digipak CDs sold out, the band produced a third run of 500 "expanded" Digipak CDs, with remixes of the album tracks from the previously released CD singles. When those sold out, the band produced 1,000 more to coincide with the release of an expanded CD edition of their latest album Monsters at which point they ended up with three albums all in Poponaut's top ten selling CD albums. 

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RECEPTION

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Losing Touch was well-received by fans and critics alike, receiving a 10/10 from Brutal Resonance and Elektroskull. 

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Press quotes [Click here for more]

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"If there’s one thing that emerges from Empathy Test’s material, its the chemistry between Howlett and Relf that allows them to compose songs that sound so polished and captivating. Here, there’s a sense of mood and melancholy that’s as heartfelt as it is unique." - The Electricity Club

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“...wouldn’t sound out of place snaking into the soundtrack of Netflix series Stranger Things’ second season." - Line of Best Fit

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"...better than "Wonderland" (1986) by Erasure , “Upstairs at Eric's” (1982) by Yazoo and “The Bones What We Believe” (2013) by CHVRCHES . Do you understand how good they are?" - Elektroskull

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"This amount of perfect should not exist in one gigantic package but Empathy Test makes it so." - Brutal Resonance