TORRES (moniker of Mackenzie Scott) announces her new album, Thirstier, out July 30th on Merge Records, and a North American and European tour. In conjunction, she unveils the album’s first single/video, “Don’t Go Puttin Wishes in My Head.” Thirstier, the follow-up to 2020’s Silver Tongue, is Scott’s most exuberant and daring record to date, showcasing her in thrilling freefall. “I’ve been conjuring this deep, deep joy that I honestly didn’t feel for most of my life,” says Scott. “I feel like a rock within myself. And I’ve started to feel that I have what it takes to help other people conjure their joy, too.” The album revolts against the gray drag of time, a searing and life-affirming eruption of an album that wonders what could happen if we found a way to make our fantasies inexhaustible. Thirstier explodes the borders of imaginative possibility.
Recorded in the fall of 2020 at Middle Farm Studios in the UK, Thirstier marks a turn towards a bigger, more bombastic sound for TORRES. The anxious hush that fell over much of Scott’s previous music gets turned inside-out in songs tailored for post-plague celebration. Scott co-produced the album with Rob Ellis and Peter Miles, drawing on her experience self-producing Silver Tongue to push her music onto an even broader scale. Guitar-driven walls of sound, reminiscent of producer Butch Vig’s work with Garbage and Nirvana, surge and dissipate like surf in high winds, carrying Scott’s commanding voice to the fore.
“I wanted to channel my intensity into something that felt positive and constructive, as opposed to being intense in a destructive or eviscerating way,” Scott notes. “I love the idea that intensity can actually be something life-saving or something joyous.”
This massive sound and celebratory mood is evident in lead single “Don’t Go Puttin Wishes in My Head,” a sparkling country romp. Bolstered by glistening synth, it’s a defiant yet disarming number that sees Scott singing of a love that knows no bounds, while sharing her vulnerabilities with remarkable candor. Its charming video was shot in Scott’s apartment with her partner. In her own words, it’s “my relentless arena country star moment—my shameless Tim McGraw cheeseball hit.”
Watch TORRES’ “Don’t Go Puttin Wishes in My Head” Video
Thirstier clasps together love songs from all angles. Romantic love, platonic love, familial love, self-love, and freeing spiritual love all commingle, all feeding one another and vaulting toward the horizon. Scott sings of love that never knows scarcity. With Thirstier, TORRES clears the way to that wellspring and invites others to follow her there.
Pre-order Thirstier
Thirstier Tracklist
1. Are You Sleepwalking?
2. Don’t Go Puttin Wishes in My Head
3. Constant Tomorrowland
4. Drive Me
5. Big Leap
6. Hug From a Dinosaur
7. Thirstier
8. Kiss the Corners
9. Hand in the Air
10. Keep the Devil Out
TORRES Tour Dates
(tickets on sale May 12 @ 10am Eastern)
Sun. Aug. 29 – Fairfield, CT @ StageOne
Mon. Aug. 30 – Portsmouth, NH @ Press Room
Tue. Aug. 31 – Cambridge, MA @ Sonia
Fri. Sept. 3 – Buffalo, NY @ Mohawk Place
Mon. Sept. 13 – Cleveland, OH @ Beachland Tavern
Tue. Sept. 14 – Columbus, OH @ Ace of Cups
Wed. Sept. 15 – Detroit, MI @ Marble Bar
Thu. Sept. 16 – Chicago, IL @ Empty Bottle
Fri. Sept. 17 – Minneapolis, MN @ 7th Street Entry
Sat. Sept. 18 – Kansas City, MO @ Record Bar
Sun. Sept. 19 – St. Louis, MO @ Off Broadway
Tue. Sept. 21 – Denver, CO @ Larimer Lounge
Wed. Sept. 22 – Salt Lake City, UT @ Kilby Court
Sat. Sept. 25 – Boise, ID @ Treefort Music Festival
Mon. Sept. 27 – Seattle, WA @ Tractor Tavern
Tue. Sept. 28 – Portland, OR @ Doug Fir Lounge
Thu. Sept. 30 – San Francisco, CA @ Brick & Mortar Music Hall
Fri. Oct. 1 – Santa Cruz, CA @ Atrium @ Catalyst
Sat. Oct. 2 – San Diego, CA @ Soda Bar
Sun. Oct. 3 – Los Angeles, CA @ Troubadour
Mon. Oct. 4 – Phoenix, AZ @ Rebel Lounge
Wed. Oct. 6 – Dallas, TX @ Deep Ellum Art Co.
Thu. Oct. 7 – Houston, TX @ Bronze Peacock
Fri. Oct. 8 – Austin, TX @ 3TEN @ ACL Live
Mon. Oct. 11 – Chattanooga, TN @ House Show
Tue. Oct. 12 – Atlanta, GA @ The Earl
Wed. Oct. 13 – Asheville, NC @ ISIS Asheville
Thu. Oct. 14 – Nashville, TN @ EXIT/IN
Fri. Oct. 15 – Knoxville, TN @ Open Chord
Sat. Oct. 16 – Durham, NC @ The Pinhook
Sun. Oct. 17 – Washington, DC @ Union Stage
Mon. Oct. 18 – Philadelphia, PA @ Johnny Brenda’s
Thu. Oct. 21 – New York, NY @ The Bowery Ballroom
Fri. March 11, 2022 – Glasgow, UK @ Mono
Sat. March 12, 2022 – Leeds, UK @ Brudenell Social Club
Sun. March 13, 2022 – Manchester, UK @ Night & Day
Mon. March 14, 2022 – Bristol, UK @ Exchange
Tue. March 15, 2022 – London, UK @ Bush Hall
Thu. March 17, 2022 – Paris, FR @ La Boule Noire
Fri. March 18, 2022 – Gent, BE @ Charlatan
Sat. March 19, 2022 – Utrecht, NL @ Ekko
Mon. March 21, 2022 – Berlin, DE @ Frannz Club
Tue. March 22, 2022 – Hamburg, DE @ Uebel & Gefährlich (Turmzimmer)
Wed. March 23, 2022 – Cologne, DE @ Bumann & SOHN
Thu. March 24, 2022 – Heidelberg, DE @ Karlstorbahnhof
Fri. March 25, 2022 – Zürich, CH @ Rote Fabrik
Sat. March 26, 2022 – Bologna, IT @ Locomotiv
Keep your mind open.
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[Thanks to Jessica at Pitch Perfect PR.]
