My friend and I arrived at Chicago’s Salt Shed (the former Morton’s Salt factory) too late to catch The Steens, mainly due to chilly weather and heavy traffic, but we made it in plenty of time to see Viagra Boys. The venue is pretty damn big, and they packed the place in a near sold-out show that lead singer Sebastian Murphy said might’ve been their biggest show in the United States.
They certainly brought the energy to back that claim, opening with a pounding version of “I Ain’t No Thief” that had beer cans and water cups flying everywhere over the large main crowd floor. Following that with “Ain’t Nice” was like pouring gasoline on a fire.
The crowd was jumping, yelling, singing and even sometimes dumbfounded as Viagra Boys ripped through old and new tracks and sometimes wandered into weird psychedelia, including a Captain Beefheart-like saxophone solo by Oscar Carls.
Other highlights included the crowd favorites “Sports” and “Troglodyte” (which had everyone chanting), the graphic deep cut “Liquids” (which Murphy admitted, on stage, is “a song about getting peed on.”), a trippy version of “Creepy Crawlers,” and a long, wild version of “Shrimp Shack” to close out the main set. It was also cool to hear “Worms” during the encore, as it’s a sharp song about impermanence but almost a relaxing tonic before “Research Chemicals” hits you in the face.
They set a high bar for bands the rest of the year. Enjoy the chaos with them if you get a chance.
DECASIA is a heavy psych rock trio who released its debut album “An Endless Feast for Hyenas” on last April. The band is coming up with an explosive cocktail mixing stoner, doom, psych rock and grunge. Inspired by what heavy rock scene does best (All Them Witches, Colour Haze, Elder…), DECASIA stands out with its own recipe. The band also has a really rock’n’roll energy, especially on stage where they offer supercharged and immersive shows.
This summer, the frenchies shot a music video in the middle of Auvergne’s countryside, not far from the barn where they recorded the album. The video features not one but two songs from the album : “Ilion” and outro “Hyenas At The Gates”. A clip shot in total DIY over 4 days in the countryside, written and directed by the band with the help of audiovisual students. Spoiler : a very special old car is featured in the music video 😉
Meanwhile, the band has just announced tour dates in France, Belgium and Germany from April 7 to 22.DECASIA will be playing at Hellfest, on Saturday June 17 (Valley Stage, 10am).
Tanukichan‘s sophomore LP GIZMOis due out March 3rd via Company Records. A project led by Hannah van Loon, in collaboration with the Grammy-nominated chillwave pioneer Chaz Bear of Toro y Moi, their album is the follow up to their debut LP, Sundays, arelease that saw an enthusiastic response when it was released in 2018, earning praise from outlets like Pitchfork, Rolling Stone, FADER, Stereogum, Loud & Quiet and The AV Club.
The album’s lead single “Don’t Give Up“ was greeted with excitement upon its release, earning best of the week nods from outlets like MTV and Pitchfork, and the follow up “Thin Air” that featured Aramis Johnson of the Tacoma, Washington band Enumclaw, earned similar acclaim when it was released alongside a Stereogum feature about the new LP.
Today, Tanukichan is sharing a final single from the LP, a track called “Take Care”.
“I wrote ‘Take Care’ when I was feeling especially depressed,” explains Van Loon. “I felt so down and bummed out that I started cutting people out of my life. I felt like whenever I had interactions with others I was such a drag that I would bring down the mood. I had nothing I wanted to talk about so I just cut off from people. It was painful to feel isolated and I craved companionship or friendship even more, but I knew that someday I would come out of it, and hopefully we would be friends again.“
Dry Cleaning, photographed in Max Miechowski’s studio in Tottenham, London, on 09/27/2022.
Stumpwork, the sophomore LP from Dry Cleaning, “vibrantly expand[ed] Dry Cleaning’s core sound” (Pitchfork), and became one of last year’s most acclaimed releases, garnering year-end praise from Rolling Stone, Sound Opinions, Uproxx, and many more. Following their performance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, the UK outfit announce Swampy, a new EP composed of two previously unreleased tracks from the Stumpwork sessions, remixes and a demo, out March 1st on 4AD, and unveil two bonus tracks, “Swampy” and “Sombre Two.” Of the additions, the band says: “These two songs (‘Swampy’ and ‘Sombre Two’) were recorded in the Stumpwork sessions and they feel like good companions to us. They share a dusty, desolate and spacey atmosphere. On the eve of this release we have been touring through the southwest US, where these songs feel at home in the arid, Mars-like landscape of the Arizona desert.”
Also featured on Swampy are remixes from Charlotte Adigéry and Bolis Pupul, recently featured in Pitchfork’s “25 New and Rising Artists Shaping the Future of Music in 2023,” and Nourished By Time, who supported Dry Cleaning on their recently-wrapped North American tour. Swampy will be released digitally and as a limited edition cassette (band store only). Tonight, Dry Cleaning will begin the UK/EU leg of their Stumpwork tour, with full dates listed below. Tickets are on sale now.
DRY CLEANING TOUR DATES Tue. Feb. 21 – Nottingham, UK @ Rock City Wed Feb. 22 – Sheffield, UK @ The Foundry Fri. Feb. 24 – Manchester, UK @ Albert Hall Sat. Feb. 25 – Birmingham, UK @ O2 Institute Sun. Feb. 26 – Bristol, UK @ O2 Academy Tue. Feb. 28 – Cardiff, UK @ Tramshed Wed. March 1 – Brighton, UK @ Chalk – SOLD OUT Fri. March 3 – London, UK @ Roundhouse Mon. Mar. 13 – Copenhagen, DK @ VEGA Wed. Mar. 15 – Stockholm, SE @ Debaser Strand Thu. Mar. 16 – Oslo, NO @ Parkteatret Sat. Mar. 18 – Hamburg, DE @ Knust Sun. Mar. 19 – Groningen, NL @ Vera – SOLD OUT Mon. Mar. 20 – Amsterdam, NL @ Paradiso Tue. March 22 – Offenbach, DE @ Hafen2 Thu. Mar. 23 – Munich, DE @ Strom Fri. Mar. 24 – Vienna, AT @ Flex Sat. Mar. 25 – Prague, CZ @ Futurum Mon. Mar. 27 – Warsaw, PL @ Hybrydy Tue. Mar. 28- Leipzig, DE @ UT Connewitz Wed. Mar. 29 – Berlin, DE @ Festsaal Kreuzberg Fri. Mar. 31 – Rotterdam, NL @ Maassilo Sat. Apr. 1 – Antwerp, BE @ Trix Sat. Aug. 26 – Domaine National de Saint-Cloud, FR @ Rock En Seine
Chicago trio FACS have been perfecting their brand of intense, cathartic art rock over the course of four ever-evolving albums. Beginning with 2018’s Negative Houses thru 2021’s landmark Present Tense, the trio digs deep into the gaping maw of a black hole and pulls back whatever debris they can grasp onto. Their newest LP Still Life In Decay, which arrives April 7th, comes as an addendum to their last album— a “post-event review,” if you will.
When the guitar punctures the lock-step swing of first album single “When You Say,” it hits like a hammer. Case utilizes his lyrics like a person suffering from anterograde amnesia, repeating phrases and holding onto old memories in a desperate attempt to avoid the slide into oblivion. Freeform poetic missives touch on themes of resignation, cynicism, class warfare, and a search for identity and meaning in a crumbling society; A primal desire to hold onto anything in a post-pandemic barrage of sensory overload.
While FACS are a heavy band, they don’t necessarily feel like one— Case’s fluttering, melodic guitar lines are buoyed by the insistent, underlying pulse of an expert rhythm section. Bassist Alianna Kalaba, who stepped in for founding member Jonathan Van Herik in 2018, makes her amicable last stand here with the group. Alongside drummer Noah Leger, they dance and twist around each other like a double helix, forming the DNA of what makes FACS sospecial. Collectively they approach rhythm from outside the groove as opposed to inside it, creating a lattice where Case weaves guitar lines like creeping vines, making the moments on Still Life In Decay where the band locks in even more powerful.
FACS have never been more solidified as a unit, and Still Life In Decay is a decidedly focused effort. The apocalyptic chaos that defined their previous album is waved away in favor of an examination of events with cumbrous clarity. Recorded by Sanford Parker at Chicago’s esteemed Electrical Audio, Still Life In Decay will be available April 7, 2023 from Trouble In Mind Records. Pre-order the record here and see FACS on tour throughout the year. More singles and news coming soon.
FACS, on tour:
April 6 Milwaukee, WI @ Cactus Club
April 7 Chicago, IL @ Empty Bottle
April 8 Chicago, IL @ Empty Bottle
May 15 Pittsburgh, PA @ Government Center
May 16 Washington, DC @ DC9
May 17 Philadelphia, PA @ PhilaMOCA
May 19 Providence, RI @ Fete Lounge
May 20 Montreal, QC @ La Sotterenea
May 21 Toronto, ON @ The Garrison
July 28 Indianapolis, IN @ Post. Festival
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Gonerfest returns for its 20th edition and to celebrate the 20th anniversary of prominent rock label Goner Records who have shaped punk, garage, soul and beyond for two decades! The gonzo independent music festival hosted by the label and iconic Tennessean storefront takes place in Memphis’ Railgarten from Thursday, September 28 through Sunday, October 1, 2023.
Today, Gonerfest 20 announces its initial lineup which so far includes performances by headliners Osees (Thursday), The Gories (Friday) and The Mummies (Saturday). Spanning genres and generations, Gonerfest 20 will showcase another unique and wide-ranging bill featuring bands, MCs, and DJs from around the world. Highlights include a number of acts coming from overseas, including performances by UK artists Chubby & the Gang and Vivron Vavron, Australian bands CIVIC, Dippers, 1-800-Mikey, TV Repairmann, Vintage Crop and C.O.F.F.I.N., Denmark’s The Courettes, Japan’s The Smog, and Lewsberg from the Netherlands, among others.
Gonerfest 20 tickets go on sale now. Golden Passes, which allow entry to all official GF20 events, are $130. Single-day passes will be available at the door, according to venue capacity. For more information and to purchase tickets, go here.
Since The King Khan & BBQ Show headlined Gonerfest 1 back in January 2005, the festival has grown to become an exciting and eclectic collision of four days of non-stop action that welcomes bands and fans from around the world. With a round-the-clock schedule of official shows, afterparties, art events, and more – at Gonerfest, the concept of community is truly at the heart of the event.
Goner Records’ co-founder Eric Friedl says, “There’s not a whole lot of separation between fans and bands and everything else in Gonerfest. It gives it a different feel, rather than seeing someone up on stage that isn’t interacting with the people at all.”
With the publication of an annual program guide, Gonerfest also works to support local business while promoting the music, arts, and culture of Memphis to its attendees. “Gonerfest has become a rite of passage,” says Goner Records co-owner Zac Ives. “It allows us to showcase our city and celebrate our little part of the music world in front of an extremely wide audience.” More than 1,000 tourists make the pilgrimage to Memphis for Gonerfest, which culminates in a substantial economic impact for its city. Gonerfest attendees eat at locally-owned restaurants like Payne’s BBQ and Cozy Corner, drink Goner-inspired beer brewed at Memphis Made, and visit the Stax Museum of American Soul Music, Graceland, and the National Civil Rights Museum.
The Mummies, Osees, The Gories, Marked Men, Chubby & the Gang, Sweeping Promises, Ibex Clone, CIVIC, The Cool Jerks, Bill Orcutt / Chris Corsano, The Courettes, C.O.F.F.I.N, Alien Nosejob, Dippers, Virvon Varvon, Cheater Slicks, Lewsberg, 1-800-Mikey, TV Repairmann, Vintage Crop, The Smog, Laundry Bats, Turnt
Additional artists, DJs, MCs and more TBA!
Over the last two decades, Gonerfest has featured a dazzlingly international array of performers including Jay Reatard, Thee Oh Sees, Eddy Current Suppression Ring, Mudhoney, Cobra Man, Lydia Lunch, Wreckless Eric, Simply Saucer, The Black Lips, The Carbonas, Rev. John Wilkins, Negative Approach, Shannon & the Clams, Cosmic Psychos, Amyl & the Sniffers, Robyn Hitchcock, The Mummies, Ty Segall, Fred Lane, The Spits, The Gizmos, Guitar Wolf, and more.
Recalling the first year of Gonerfest, Friedl says, “It was amazing that people wanted to come to Memphis to see this music. The first time I realized we were doing something more than just putting on a show was when we saw this guy from Italy walking down Cleveland Street in the middle of the day. I was like, ‘Okay, if people are willing to come from Italy to watch these bands over a weekend in Memphis, we might be doing something interesting here.’”
More About Goner Records: An independent music label and record store, Goner Records is based in Memphis, Tennessee and co-owned by Eric Friedl and Zac Ives. Goner Records is internationally recognized for its roster of artists including Oblivians, Jay Reatard, The King Khan & BBQ Show, Cobra Man, the Carbonas, NOTS, Ty Segall, and Eddy Current Suppression Ring. Goner Records has been named a top 10 record shop in the U.S. by SPIN and Rolling Stone, and a top 3 independent label by Billboard.
Spotlights, the hypnotic trio featuring married couple Mario and Sarah Quintero with Chris Enriquez, release their new album, Alchemy For The Dead, on April 28 via Ipecac Recordings.
The album, written and recorded following the band’s move to Pittsburgh, finds the trio once again balancing the tightrope of light and dark, toying with sonic texture, and as Invisible Oranges described Spotlights’ unique “magic” that’s “flickering with unnamable emotionality.” Mario Quintero shares the band’s mindset while writing and recording Alchemy For The Dead: “Our focus when making this record was to not repeat ourselves. I think we achieved our goal. Though we’re proud of all our releases, making just another ‘Spotlights’ album wasn’t an option. Pushing our own boundaries while creating something cathartic, yet strangely suffocating, with new sounds and textures as well as more personal and self-reflective themes, this album feels like a new fork in the path for us. Hopefully the listeners will follow.”
A preview of the nine-song collection arrives today with the release of the Oleg Rooz- created video for “Algorithmic” (https://youtu.be/19TqHZBUOgY). “For me, the song has a religious theme to it,” Mario adds. “It touches on the story of resurrection and afterlife in this one narrative, while wondering, does any of it really matter?” That narrative, one of death, the resistance and acceptance to one of life’s most secretive aspects, is a lyrical theme throughout Alchemy For The Dead.
Album pre-orders, which include two 2LP vinyl variants: a standard black version and a limited-edition gold edition available exclusively via Ipecac.com and on the band’s upcoming Alchemy For The Dead tour, can be found here: https://spotlights.lnk.to/AFTD. Vinyl is slated for an Aug. 4 release.
Alchemy For The Dead tour:
April 26 Pittsburgh, PA Club Café
April 27 Grand Rapids, MI Pyramid Scheme
April 28 Chicago, IL Subterranean Downstairs
April 29 Tolono, IL Loose Cobra
April 30 St. Louis, MO Red Flag
May 1 Kansas City, MO Mini Bar
May 3 Denver, CO Hi Dive
May 4 Salt Lake City, UT Kilby Court
May 6 Sacramento, CA Club Colonial
May 7 San Francisco, CA Winters Tavern
May 11 Los Angeles, CA Hollywood Palladium*
May 12 San Diego, CA Tower Bar
May 14 Las Vegas, NV House of Blues*
May 16 Denver, CO Mission Ballroom*
May 17 Salt Lake City, UT Union Event Center*
May 19 Seattle, WA Showbox*
May 20 Seattle, WA Showbox*
May 21 Portland, OR Crystal Ballroom*
May 23 Oakland, CA Fox Theater*
May 24 Oakland, CA Fox Theater*
May 27 Denton, TX Dan’s Silverleaf
May 28 Austin, TX Hotel Vegas
May 30 Tulsa, OK Whittier Bar
May 31 Shreveport, LA Bear’s
June 1 Little Rock, AR Mutants Fest
June 2 Nashville, TN Drkmttr
June 3 Atlanta, GA The Earl
June 4 Gainesville, FL The Backyard
June 9 Miami, FL Gramp’s
June 10 Tampa, FL The Orpheum
June 11 Orlando, FL TBA
June 13 Columbia, SC TBA
June 14 Charlotte, NC Snug Harbor
June 15 Asheville, NC The Odd
June 16 Knoxville, TN The Pilot Light
June 17 Louisville, KY Kaiju Bar
June 18 Columbus, OH Big Room Bar
June 21 Harrisonburg, VA The Golden Pony
June 22 Baltimore, MD Metro Gallery
June 23 Philadelphia, PA Ortlieb’s
June 24 Brooklyn, NY Saint Vitus
*-Ipecac Geek Show performances
Birdhands open on dates between April 27 to May 1. Rile open from May 3 to May 6. Dates between May 11 and 24 are the Ipecac Geek Show with labelmates Mr. Bungle and the Melvins.
Pittsburgh trio Love Ethic announce their forthcoming debut album The Thinking Man’s Redux, sharing the first single — a fitting Valentine’s Day tune — “Let Me Count The Ways” via Punk News. Hear “Let Me Count The Ways” HERE. (Direct Bandcamp.)
The influence of punk history on Love Ethic’s music is no secret. The band wields angular texture, guitar eruptions, non-sequitur genre-bending, and an arresting holler from frontman/guitarist The Inevitable Mr. Chris that would fit seamlessly next to their predecessors (e.g. Minutemen, Nomeansno, The Birthday Party, Fugazi, Melvins, etc.)
The ferocity, however, is punctuated by exhalations of pop sensibility, delta moans, and a crooning allure that have attracted a broad mix of listeners to this dynamic music.
The band revived its musical enterprise just over a year ago in its birthplace of Pittsburgh, PA with a young, hungry rhythm section comprised of Anthony Capozzi’s searing drum battery and complex counterpoints provided by bass virtuoso Ethan Zajac-Woodie. Since then, they have quickly garnered glowing attention performing alongside a variety of established groups including Jon Spencer + The Hitmakers, Ed fROMOHIO (of fIREHOSE), Sponge, The Schizophonics, and Beechwood.
Love Ethic has recently completed a reworked album of their early oeuvre engineered/produced by Spotlights (Ipecac) helmsman extraordinaire Mario Quintero and mastered by Seth Manchester of Machines with Magnets studio (METZ/IDLES, Mdou Moctar, Full of Hell), intent on expanding their territory in audiences’ hearts and record collections both domestically and abroad.
The Thinking Man’s Redux will be available on LP, CD and download on April 28th, 2023.
Caroline Rose announces The Art of Forgetting, their new album out March 24th on New West Records, and presents a new single/video, “Miami.” Rose is an artist known for their wit and satirical storytelling, but for the first time, with The Art of Forgetting, Rose’s music teems with raw, intense emotion. With no guard up this time, they present the type of confessional honesty we’ve only previously caught glimpses of in their work. Of course, Rose’s impish humor does pop up unexpectedly amidst themes of regret and grief, loss and change, shame and the inevitability of pain.
After a series of heartbreaking events, Rose had no desire to make a statement, let alone make a new album. It was a time of contemplation and transformation. What transpired was what Rose considers a gradual union of reconnection and growth. Prompted by a difficult breakup, Rose began a deep-dive inward, unknowingly digging up long-buried childhood experiences. All the while, Rose was getting voicemails from their grandmother “who was clearly losing her mind.” These respective moments are pieced throughout the album, offering moments of lightness amidst an otherwise heart-rending story of a person who has forgotten, and is perhaps re-learning, how to love themselves. “It got me thinking about all the different ways memory shows up throughout our lives,” says Rose. “It can feel like a curse or be wielded as a tool.”
With this in mind, Rose produced the album using devices and media that embody the characteristics of fading or faulty memories. They gravitated towards instruments that naturally changed or decayed over time: wooden and string instruments, voices, tape, and granular synthesis. They began recording basic layers in their home studio, and “from there it was about a year of experimenting with those recordings both at home and in a couple other studios–chopping them up into loops and smears, creating modular percussion, and ultimately building any additional parts around them,” says Rose. Layers of vocal arrangements from Balkan-influenced yawps to Gregorian autotune choirs, acoustic instrumentation chopped and mangled like a glitching memory, and dreamlike synths push and pull to create a hugely dynamic soundscape.
Today’s “Miami” is an acoustic-centered track whose chorus of squealing guitars and bombastic drums seems to all but burst out of the speakers. Rose explains: “I’m not one to shy away from drama, and so this was a perfect opportunity to really bring out every ounce of desperation and anger and all those confusing emotions that happen after a big heartbreak.” Rose sings:
Clean up all the memories Sweep the bad under the rug Put the good inside a coffer I wish I knew anything ‘Cuz even at my best I don’t know why I even bother
This is the hard part The part that they don’t tell you about There is the art of loving This is the art of forgetting how
The “Miami” video, starring Rose playing a version of themself alongside Massima Bell, was directed by Sam Bennett, and shot at the Austin Motel, Sagebrush, and a sound stage in Austin, and continues Rose’s run of theatrical, storyline driven videos. “For the ‘Miami’ video, I was mainly focused on what would be the most effective way to move people in regards to the two characters and how they interact,” says Rose. “Because this is a sort of loose recreation of some things in my life it was important to me to interpret the feeling of that time as accurately as we could within four minutes’ time. Sam, who is a dear friend of mine and brilliant director, thought a great way to capture that fever-dream-like quality was to create a lot of movement with a continuous shot. He showed me different lenses and cameras to use and we ultimately went with an anamorphic, Old Hollywood-esque feel, which gives it that nostalgia thinking back on a time past.”
“Every time I make an album I’ll come out of it learning a lot about myself,” comments Rose. “Now I look back and see the healing of a wound. I feel like a new version of myself. I think one for the better.”
This spring, Caroline Rose will bring their energetic live show across North America and the UK/EU. Newly-announced dates are on sale Friday at 10am local time and a full list of dates can be found below. Listen to “Love / Lover / Friend”
The Art of Forgetting Tracklist 1. Love / Lover / Friend 2. Rebirth 3. Miami 4. Better Than Gold 5. Everywhere I Go I Bring the Rain 6. The Doldrums 7. The Kiss 8. Cornbread 9. Stockholm Syndrome 10. Tell Me What You Want 11. Florida Room 12. Love Song For Myself 13. Jill Says 14. Where Do I Go From Here?
Caroline Rose Tour Dates: (new dates in bold) Fri. March 31 – Saratoga Springs, NY @ Arthur Zankel Music Center Sat. April 1 – Montreal, QC @ Petit Campus Tue. April 4 – Burlington, VT @ Higher Ground Wed. April 5 – Burlington, VT @ Higher Ground Thu. April 6 – Boston, MA @ Royale Sat. April 8 – Toronto, ON @ Horseshoe Tavern Sun. April 9 – Pittsburgh, PA @ Mr. Smalls Theatre Tue. April 11 – Philadelphia, PA @ Union Transfer Wed. April 12 – New York, NY @ Webster Hall Fri. April 14 – Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club Sat. April 15 – Richmond, VA @ Richmond Music Hall Sun. April 16 – Carrboro, NC @ Cat’s Cradle Tue. April 18 – Asheville, NC @ The Orange Peel Wed. April 19 – Nashville, TN @ Brooklyn Bowl Fri. April 21 – Chicago, IL @ Thalia Hall Sat. April 22 – Milwaukee, WI @ Turner Hall Ballroom Sun. April 23 – Minneapolis, MN @ First Avenue Tue. April 25 – Denver, CO @ The Gothic Theatre Fri. April 28 – Seattle, WA @ The Showbox Sat. April 29 – Portland, OR @ Wonder Ballroom Wed. May 3 – San Francisco, CA @ The Fillmore Fri. May 5 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Fonda Theatre Sat. May 6 – Pioneertown, CA @ Pappy & Harriet’s Wed. May 31 – Manchester, UK @ BOTW Thu. June 1 – Dublin, IE @ Whelan’s Sat. June 3 – Glasgow, UK @ Stereo Sun. June 4 – Bristol, UK @ Exchange Mon. June 5 – London, UK @ Heaven
In November, Tanukichan announced their sophomore LP GIZMO(out March 3rd via Company Records). A project led by Hannah van Loon, in collaboration with the Grammy-nominated chillwave pioneer Chaz Bear of Toro y Moi, their album is the follow up to their debut LP, Sundays, arelease that saw an enthusiastic response when it was released in 2018, earning praise from outlets like Pitchfork, Rolling Stone, FADER, Stereogum, Loud & Quiet and The AV Club.
The album’s lead single “Don’t Give Up“ was greeted with excitement upon its release, earning best of the week nods from outlets like MTV and Pitchfork, and today Tanukichan are sharing a second single from the album, a track called “Thin Air” that features Aramis Johnson of the Tacoma, Washington band Enumclaw. To coincide with the single’s release van Loon has spoken to Stereogum about the new album.
LISTEN to Tanukichan’s “Thin Air” feat. Enumclaw HERE
“This song is about exes, some people that I really cared about but ultimately didn’t want to be with,” van Loon explains. “The sadness I feel when I’m hurting someone, and missing them and knowing you won’t ever have that closeness again. It’s about how important they are and how much they’ve taught me, or helped me, but how I also know that people come and go. The chorus has a double meaning for me where I feel like I can’t prioritize relationships because I need to keep on focusing on myself. The other is feeling like I’m broken and keep ending up with the wrong people, and hurting them.”
——–
GIZMO is named after van Loon’s, who became a much-needed companion while the Bay Area musician wrote her second album as the pandemic began. The album is an exercise in release, whether from situational hindrances — a forced lockdown, for one — or from self-imposed hedonistic coping mechanisms. “A theme I always had floating around was escape,” van Loon explains of her follow-up to 2018’s Sundays. “Escaping from myself, my problems, sadness and cycles.”
To channel the more uplifting spirit she wanted for GIZMO, van Loon turned to the radio pop-rock of her childhood: “I was struck by the in-your-face positivity of the lyrics,” she adds, referencing artists like 311, The Cranberries, and Tom Petty. “I wanted to bring that positivity while writing about the sad and helpless emotions I’d been grappling with.”
This new found positivity and interesting blend of influences are in evidence on “Don’t Give Up,” a nu metal-meets-Cocteau Twins groove that deals with the experience of trying to overcome imposter syndrome, as van Loon explains:
“This song is about feeling I haven’t done anything with my life, but also knowing that I’ve accomplished a lot and it’s only getting better. I started writing the lyrics when I was on tour opening for the Drums after my first album came out. We were playing sold out shows in front of hundreds of people, but I knew it could change in an instant. I felt like I hit rock bottom emotionally, I wasn’t ready for the road and it killed me. I felt so disconnected from the band even though they were my backbone and were making it happen. The only thing that really helps me at that point is feeling like I can just let everything go, and we all die. Just accepting the fact that I can’t control anything and that in the end it doesn’t matter. We will all disappear. I wrote the chorus years later when I was finishing a bunch of the songs. I didn’t want it to be depressing, even though that’s where it came from. It came from giving up but I wanted to keep going. I wanted it to mean something moving on from the negative and I came up with a ridiculously positive chorus. Don’t give up now you know there’s another day, just know you’re going to get to a better place, a better place meaning a better place in life, or “heaven,” just nothingness where all your worries are gone.”
GIZMO will be released on Company Records on March 3rd. It is available for preorder/presave here.
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