Two years since their debut album CUTS ACROSS THE LAND and UK indie rockers The Duke Spirit are back with THE EX VOTO EP, the first fruits of their Joshua Tree recording sessions with Chris Goss.

Sounding as invigorated and rocking as you could hope for, THE EX VOTO EP finds the band in absolutely blistering form; their sound beefed up and buff, almost sounding like a new band in places. Opener LASSOO is a balls to the wall slab on dirty rock n roll, those Queens Of The Stone Age influences showing themselves in the claustrophobic guitar attacks and Leila Moss' dense howl. MASCA retains the same claustrophobic edge, but adds a healthy dose of tension and restraint, the band constantly on the verge of eruption, traces of early PJ Harvey swirling in the air. Elsewhere, the acoustic tinged ballad DOG ROSES introduces a country element to their sound; Mazzy Star by way of The Dirty Three whilst the indie rocking A WILD HOPE is a self produced affair that may lack that Chris Goss gritty edge; but nevertheless finds The Duke Spirit in great form.

A blistering return from The Duke Spirit, THE EX VOTO EP finds the band at their most exhilarating, compelling and intoxicating form to date.

The Duke Spirit are Liela Moss (Vocals), Luke Ford (Guitars), Dan Higgins (Guitars), Toby Butler (Bass) and Olly Betts (Drums)

They are back with a life-affirming new EP due for release on 22nd October on new independent label You Are Here.

The four track Ex Voto EP features brand new tracks Lassoo', Masca' and Dog Roses' the first fruits of the band's recent Joshua Tree recording sessions with Queens Of The Stone Age and Soulwax producer Chris Goss at the infamous Rancho de la Luna studio. It will also feature a fourth new track ? A Wild Hope - which was produced by the band themselves in London.

The EP arrives two years after the release of the band?s critically acclaimed debut album Cuts Across The Land ? a time which have seen The Duke Spirit touring the USA extensively before settling in the Joshua Tree desert over the summer months. These five quintessentially English musicians, displaced into the isolation of the American desert to work with their punk rock heroes, have returned with a tougher, stronger, more upbeat sound.

Where once the cold rush of The Velvet Underground coursed through their veins, now influences like The Staple Sisters are there too, warming up the band's manifestations of love and sorrow while lead singer Liela Moss, fresh from recent guest vocal live appearances with the Jesus and Mary Chain and UNKLE, proves why we should treasure her dearly as one of the best singers we have. The Ex Voto EP heralds a new sound for The Duke Spirit, offering a glimpse of what?s to come from their forthcoming album (due in February 2008). It's, at points, seductive, gentle and haunting; at other times it's aggressive and biting, and sometimes it's astonishingly all these things at the same time.

The Duke Spirit>http://www.dukespirit.com/