Today, Lael Neale is sharing the official video for “White T-Shirt,” a new song available now on all DSPs and recorded during the Star Eaters Delight sessions, her acclaimed album of 2023, released earlier this spring. The song was written and composed by Neale and produced and mixed by Guy Blakeslee.
Blakeslee says of the song, “‘’White T-Shirt’ dates back a number of years to when I used to follow Lael around LA to all of her barely publicized performances. The song never ceased to silence the chatter in the room. There was nothing I could add to this performance, it’s a raw gem that stands alone and cuts through the noise.”
Lael Neale has also extended her international tour schedule for 2023 in support of Star Eaters Delight, which resumes Tuesday, July 11th in Prague, CR at Zluté Lazné and currently runs through Friday, September 29th in Seattle, WA at The Paramount Theatre.
Highlights for the summer and fall run include UK & European dates supporting Ben Howard (July 11th-July 23rd), U.S. Pacific Northwest dates with label mate Weyes Blood (September 27th-29th), and new UK & European headlining shows (September 6th-16th). A current list of dates is below, and tickets for these shows are on sale now.
Tue. Jul. 11 - Prague, CR - Zluté Lazné * Wed. Jul. 12 - Warsaw, PL - Progresja Summer Stage * Fri. Jul. 14 - Berlin, DE - Zitadelle * Sat. Jul. 15 - Hamburg, DE - Stadtpark * Mon. Jul. 17 - Munich, DE - Tonhalle * Tue. Jul. 18 - Zurich, CH - X-Tra Podium * Fri. Jul. 21 - Glasgow, UK - SWG3 Yard * Sat. Jul. 22 - London, UK - Alexandra Palace Park * Sun. Jul. 23 - Cardiff, UK - Cardiff Castle * Wed. Sep. 06 - Rotterdam, NL - Roodkapje Thu. Sep. 07 - Utrecht, NL - Ekko Fri. Sep. 08 - Amsterdam, NL - Paradiso Upstairs Sat. Sep. 09 - Asten-Heusden, NL - Misty Fields Festival Mon. Sep. 11 - Bristol, UK - Crofters Rights Tue. Sep. 12 - Brighton, UK - The Prince Albert Wed. Sep. 13 - London, UK - Moth Club Thu. Sep. 14 - Dublin, IE - The Workman’s Club Sat. Sep. 16 - Leffinge, BE - Leffingeleuren Festival Wed. Sep. 27 - San Francisco, CA - Warfield Theater ^ Thu. Sep. 28 - Eugene, OR - McDonald Theatre ^ Fri. Sep. 29 - Seattle, WA - Paramount Theater ^
* w/ Ben Howard ^ w/ Weyes Blood
The beguiling Star Eaters Delight reveals an expansion of Neale’s sonic collaboration with producer and accompanist Guy Blakeslee and arrives on the heels of her Sub Pop debut Acquainted With Night, which won international acclaim for its crystalline vocals, clever songwriting, and excellent use of Omnichord to build a world of beautiful reveries.
In April of 2020, Lael moved from Los Angeles back to her family’s farm in rural Virginia. Looking at the world from a distance and getting in tune with her own rhythms, she wrote and recorded steadily for two dreamlike years, driven by a need to make order out of chaos. Forged in isolation, Star Eaters Delight is a vehicle for returning, not just to civilization, but to celebration. She explains: “The unbroken silences on the farm compelled me to break them with sound. This album is louder and more external, calling out to the world.”
Star Eaters Delight was written by Neale, with arrangements and production by Guy Blakeslee. The recordings were made on cassette in Virginia and mastered by Chris Coady in Los Angeles.
Star Eaters Delight is available now from Sub Pop. LP orders from megamart.subpop.com, and select independent retailers in North America, the UK and Europe, will receive the Loser edition on gold vinyl.
What people are saying about Lael Neale’s Star Eaters Delight: “A unique, boldly weird proposition, and one that proudly carries the faint hint of tractor grease. Half of it comes on like cult 70s folk artist Karen Dalton hanging out with the Velvet Underground and Suicide, while the rest offers somewhat more modern balladry, placing her more in the world of Angel Olsen and Cat Power.” - THE GUARDIAN
“Spellbinding” ★★★★★ - SHINDIG!
“There’s something a little haunting about her voice, it helps too that she writes primarily on the Omnichord, which has a little bit of spookiness built into it. But this is kind of an album for Luddites about how to exist in a world that demands too much of your attention and how you can be intentional about the way you move through it. It was recorded on cassette, which I love because it brings a real warmth to it, and a real presence of being in the room, which I think really delivers that message home.” “New Music Friday: The Best Releases Out April 21st” - NPR MUSIC
“…An excellent new album” - STEREOGUM
“Neale has placed her trust in life’s meanders—and in its source—and the result is her best work yet: a golden mean between experimentation and pop, lo-fi and hi-fi, vitality and rest.” - PASTE
“Neale is imaginative, but she’s steeped in songwriting craft and she knows her way round a whopping chorus.” ★★★★ - MOJO
“Star Eater’s Delight…was recorded on cassette, and tape hiss acts like a third band member here. She sings of flowers, rivers, seas, and trees; holy water, perfect deaths; bells of time, patience, and the speed of medicine. Carried by words and rhythm, she’s barreling towards something just beyond the horizon.” - AQUARIUM DRUNKARD
“Neale has put together a tight package of an album with no stray notes but one also brimming with a sly multitude of ideas. Kudos to Neale for not playing it safe and simultaneously doing something wholly different than anyone else out there.” 9/10 - UNDER THE RADAR
“This collection of versatile songs acts as a tour of different neighborhoods in the beautifully smeary nocturnal dream world Neale began building on her last album.” ★★★★ - ALL MUSIC
“A collection of songs with the weight and conviction of hymns. Some have a more spare, lo-fi feel, with Neale’s voice accompanied by vintage instruments, including her signature mellotron, but the real centerpiece is the eight-minute “In Verona,” which brings a real sense of urgency to its invocations of Shakespeare.” “Notable Releases of the Week” - BROOKLYN VEGAN
“An elegantly spare showcase of her radiant voice, a tremulous yodel tinged with gospel and country inflections. Bathed in antique analog acoustics, spine-tingling ballads of romantic yearning....” - UNCUT
Sub Pop has released the 30th-anniversary edition of Six Finger Satellite’s The Pigeon Is the Most Popular Bird, the group’s underground classic and debut full-length from 1993, with a brand new, fully remastered CD and double-LP reissue.
Formed in 1990 in Providence, Rhode Island by J. Ryan (singer/keyboards), John MacLean (guitar), Peter Phillips (guitar), Chris Dixon (bass), and Rick Pelletier (drums), Six Finger Satellite quickly signed to Sub Pop and released the band’s first demo tape as the Weapon EP.
Following Weapon, Dixon left the group and was replaced by Kurt Niemand, and the band quickly jumped into making their debut full-length with Bob Weston (of Shellac, who later named a single The Bird Is the Most Popular Finger in honor of Six Finger Satellite). Released in 1993, The Pigeon Is the Most Popular Bird was the first release to truly capture the adventurous, biting spirit and sound of Six Finger Satellite.
The album is a landmark of noisy, distressing post-punk, drawing influence from Gang of Four, The Birthday Party, and Wire while adding a healthy dose of the band’s own, unique sonic antagonism. Amongst the brittle rock tracks, The Pigeon Is the Most Popular Bird has dashes of ahead-of-their-time keyboard and studio experiments that became more prominent on the band’s later albums, presaging LCD Soundsystem, DFA Records, and much of the early-2000s post-punk revival.
All Music offers this, “This is the band’s rawest record, featuring the least amount of studio gadgetry and manipulation. J. Ryan’s voice bears no effects or bizarrely buried/contorted trickery, sounding hoarse and anxious throughout. Nonetheless, it certainly sets the table for the band’s love of noise and lunacy, combined with a healthy splash of bizarre humor. Hardly any other indie band at the time was doing this.”
In 2008, Pitchfork rightly called The Pigeon Is the Most Popular Bird “one of the best noise-rock records of the ‘90s,” writing that “the transitions from silly to searing highlight Six Finger Satellite’s unpredictable and caustic approach… this was the first of several examples of them spurning underground trends, and their most exhilaratingly bitter pill to swallow.”
The Pigeon Is the Most Popular Bird, featuring a new cover design by Dare Matheson, is now available from Sub Pop. LP orders from megamart.subpop.com, select independent retailers in North America, and the UK and EU, will receive the limited Loser edition on Red and Blue vinyl.
Six Finger Satellite The Pigeon Is the Most Popular Bird
Tracklisting: 1. [Untitled] 2. Home for the Holy Day 3. [Untitled] 4. Laughing Larry 5. [Untitled] 6. Funny Like a Clown 7. [Untitled] 8. Deadpan 9. [Untitled] 10. Hi-Lo Jerk 11. [Untitled] 12. Love (via Satellite) 13.[Untitled] 14. Save the Last Dance for Larry 15. [Untitled] 16. Solitary Hiro 17. [Untitled] 18. Neuro-Harmonic Conspiracy 19. [Untitled] 20. Takes One to Know One 21. [Untitled] 22. [Untitled] 23. Takes One To Know One 24. [Untitled]
Bully (aka Alicia Bognanno) has released her new kaleidoscopic full-length Lucky For You, which is available today worldwide from Sub Pop. The album features the previously released singles: “Lose You (Feat. Soccer Mommy),” “Days Move Slow,” “Hard to Love,” and “Change Your Mind.” which has led to praise and notices from the likes of The New York Times, NPR Music,Rolling Stone, The FADER, Stereogum, Pitchfork, and more.
Bully’s 2023 tour schedule in support of Lucky For You resumes June 3rd in Lexington, KY, at Railbird Festival, and runs through September 24th in Washington, DC, at Black Cat. Highlights for the summer and fall run include a 13-date main support slot opening for the Pixies and Franz Ferdinand from June 8th through 25th, with headline dates from August 10th through September 24th. See below for a current list of Bully live shows.
Sat. Jun. 03 - Lexington, KY - Railbird Festival Sun. Jun. 04 - Charlottesville, VA - The Southern Tue. Jun. 06 - New York, NY - Racket Thu. Jun. 08 - Boston, MA - MGM Music Hall at Fenway * Fri. Jun. 09 - Philadelphia, PA - The Met Philadelphia * Sat. Jun. 10 - Washington, DC - The Anthem * Mon. Jun. 12 - Columbus, OH - KEMBA Live! * Tue. Jun. 13 - Pittsburgh, PA - Stage AE * Wed. Jun. 14 - Cincinnati, OH - The Andrew J Brady ICON Music Center * Fri. Jun. 16 - Raleigh, NC - Red Hat Amphitheater * Sat. Jun. 17 - Asheville, NC - Rabbit Rabbit * Tue. Jun. 20 - Atlanta, GA - Coca-Cola Roxy * Wed. Jun. 21 - New Orleans, LA - The Fillmore * Fri. Jun. 23 - Houston, TX - Bayou Music Center * Sat. Jun. 24 - Dallas, TX - Southside Ballroom * Sun. Jun. 25 - Austin, TX - Moody Amphitheater * Thu. Aug. 10 - Chicago, IL - Thalia Hall Fri. Aug. 11 - St. Louis, MO - Off-Broadway Sat. Aug. 12 - Lawrence, KS - Bottleneck Mon. Aug. 14 - Denver, CO - Marquis Theatre Tue. Aug. 15 - Salt Lake City, UT - Urban Lounge Wed. Aug. 16 - Boise, ID - TBD Fri. Aug. 18th - Seattle, WA - Neptune Sat. Aug. 19 - Vancouver, BC - Biltmore Cabaret Sun. Aug. 20 - Portland, OR - Aladdin Theatre Tue. Aug. 22 - San Francisco, CA - The Independent Wed. Aug. 23 - Los Angeles, CA - Teragram Ballroom Thu. Aug. 24 - Anaheim, CA - Chain Reaction Fri. Aug. 25 - San Diego, CA - Soda Bar Sat. Aug. 26 - Tucson, AZ - Club Congress Mon. Aug. 28 - Santa Fe, NM - Meow Wolf Tue. Aug. 29 - Oklahoma City, OK - Beer City Music Hall Thu. Aug. 31 - Nashville, TN - Brooklyn Bowl Thu. Sep. 14 - Davenport, IA - Raccoon Motel Fri. Sep. 15 - Minneapolis, MN - First Ave Sat. Sep. 16 - Milwaukee, WI - X-Ray Arcade Sun. Sep. 17 - Detroit, MI - Loving Touch Tue. Sep. 19 - Toronto, ON - Lee’s Palace Wed. Sep. 20 - Albany, NY - Lark Hall Thu. Sep. 21 - Boston, MA - Crystal Ballroom Fri. Sep. 22 - Hamden, CT - Space Ballroom Sat. Sep. 23 - Philadelphia, PA - First Unitarian Sun. Sep. 24 - Washington, DC - Black Cat * w/ Pixies and Franz Ferdinand
What people are saying about Bully:
“The result is a confident, compelling record that reveals — and revels in — the softness behind the feedback and fuzz that continue to make Bully a force to be reckoned with.” [Lucky For You] 8/10 - EXCLAIM!
“Alicia Bognanno’s fourth album is an open-hearted, anthemic career-best.” [Lucky For You, ALBUM OF THE WEEK] - PASTE
“…Lucky For You is Bully’s best album yet, immediate and undeniable and kind of awe-inspiring in its complex simplicity.” - [Lucky For You, ALBUM OF THE WEEK] STEREOGUM
“‘Days Move Slow,’ from Alicia Bognanno’s grungy indie-rock project Bully, is a song about being caught in the muck of grief — but it also has a propulsive, bouncy energy that promises eventual forward motion. “There’s flowers on your grave that grow,” Bognanno sings in her signature holler, battling her buzzing guitar. “Something’s gotta change, I know.” - NEW YORK TIMES
“‘Days Move Slow’ is a punchy but poignant tune, an energetic and honest exploration of grief that Bully’s Alicia Bognanno wrote after the death of her dog, Mezzi.” - ROLLING STONE
“‘Days Move Slow’ is pristine Bully – sparking pop, but also working with a seismic edge… Retaining the anthemic bite she’s become known for, the sessions adding aspects of shoegaze, punk, and late 90s British guitar pop.” - CLASH
“‘Lose You’ attempts to reckon with the idea that even a love that seems like it’ll last forever isn’t necessarily immortal. Taking cues from late ’80s and ’90s shoegaze pioneers, the track is driven by a steadily, thumping beat that backdrops Bognanno’s fuzzed-out guitars: “Either way I’m gonna lose you,” she and Allison lament in harmony, before a ripper of a guitar solo near the song’s end.” - CONSEQUENCE
“The rasp in Alicia Bognanno’s voice makes everything she sings engaging and she uses the pain inherent in that croak to great effect on ‘Lose You’” -THE FADER
“With lashings of scuzz and slacker fire, it’s a guaranteed hit with Gen X and Z alike.” [“Lose You”] - GUITAR WORLD
“‘Lose You’ is a succinct grunge-pop tune woven with stark realizations.” - FLOOD
“Featuring fellow fuzz-rocker Sophie Allison, AKA Soccer Mommy, ‘Lose You’ is one of those tracks that is filled to the brim with pop hooks and crunchy guitar riffs. As Bully and Soccer Mommy trade harmonies, the banging backing track that supports them continuously ebbs and flows through different dynamics. The sound is always ecstatic, especially when a trippy guitar solo bubbles up from the ether.” - FAR OUT
“Her fourth album is perhaps her most candid yet, and it’s all the more triumphant for it.” - Upset
“Cherry-picked from the rich tapestry of alt-rock past… but all heart, specifically Alicia Bognanno’s torn, bleeding irresistible heart.” -Classic Rock
“‘Days Move Slow’ is pristine Bully – sparking pop, but also working with a seismic edge… Retaining the anthemic bite she’s become known for, the sessions adding aspects of shoegaze, punk, and late 90s British guitar pop.” - Clash
“More layers and nuance than ever before… magnificently raw.” -Record Collector
Bully Lucky For You
Tracklisting: 1. All I Do 2. Days Move Slow 3. A Wonderful Life 4. Hard to Love 5. Change Your Mind 6. How Will I Know 7. A Love Profound 8. Lose You 9. Ms. America 10. All This Noise
Today, June 13th, marks the release of “Every Day’s a Lesson in Humility,” a new collaboration from Suki Waterhouse and Belle and Sebastian, available now on all DSPs and as a limited-edition vinyl 7”.
The sweet and summery “Every Day’s a Lesson in Humility” was written by Suki Waterhouse and Belle and Sebastian, produced by Belle and Sebastian, mixed by Kevin Burleigh at Gorbals Sound Recording Studios in Glasgow, and mastered by Frank Arkwright at Abbey Road Studios in London.
“Every Day’s a Lesson in Humility” is the B-side to Suki Waterhouse’s “To Love” 7” single, being released as part of the very limited Sub Pop Singles Club, Vol. 8, which can be had only by subscribing at the Sub Pop Mega Mart.
In 2022, Suki Waterhouse released her debut album, I Can’t Let Go, and her follow-up EP of earlier material, Milk Teeth, released later that year. The latter features her single “Good Looking,” which went viral on TikTok and peaked at #1 on Spotify’s Viral USA Chart. The song amassed more than 170 million streams and led to 5 million monthly listeners at Spotify, to date.
Suki wrapped the “Coolest Place in the World Tour,” her sold-out, North American headline run earlier this year. She also supported Father John Misty on his 2022 North American tour, which included stops at the legendary Red Rocks Amphitheater, Los Angeles’ Hollywood Forever Cemetery, New York’s Radio City Music Hall, and more. Recently, she also starred as Karen Sirko in “Daisy Jones & The Six,” the hit Amazon television miniseries based on the popular book by Taylor Jenkins Reid. For 2023, Suki is currently in the midst of a summer and fall US festival run which includes appearances at Bonnaroo, Lollapalooza, and Ohana Festivals.
With a legacy spanning three decades, Belle and Sebastian have truly earned their place in music history. The unique, unpredictable, and fiercely loved band have a plethora of accolades and plaudits to their name including winning the “Best Newcomers” BRIT in 1999, selling out the Hollywood Bowl, and contributing to the soundtrack for an array of films (Juno, The Power of Nightmares).
In 2019, Belle and Sebastian hosted a 4-day festival at sea, The Boaty Weekender, twenty years on from their pioneering holiday-camp-held festival, The Bowlie Weekender, featuring friends and contemporaries including Mogwai, Yo La Tengo, Teenage Fanclub, Camera Obscura, Django Django, and many others.
Belle and Sebastian’s most recent output, 2022s A Bit Of Previous, and its surprise follow-up, Late Developers, in early 2023, saw the band continuing to reinvent itself while remaining true to its independent spirit. They will support both albums with a series of UK, and EU dates this summer.
Suki Waterhouse Tour Dates Thu. Jun. 15 - Manchester, TN - Bonnaroo Festival Thu. Aug. 03 - Minneapolis, MN - First Avenue Sat. Aug. 05 - Chicago, IL - Lollapalooza Sat. Sep. 30 - Columbia, MD - All Things Go Festival Sun. Oct. 01 - Dana Point, CA - Ohana Festival
Belle and Sebastian Tour Dates Sun. Jun. 25 - Antwerp, BE - Middenvijver Linkeroever Sun. Jul. 02 - Dublin, IE - 3Olympia Theatre Mon. Jul. 03 - Belfast, UK - The Limelight 1 Wed. Jul. 05 - Newcastle Upon Tyne, UK - O2 City Hall, Newcastle Thu. Jul. 06 - Hull, UK - Asylum, Hull University Union Sat. Jul. 08 - Liverpool, UK - Olympia Sun. Jul. 09 - Edinburgh, UK - Usher Hall Mon. Jul. 10 - Aberdeen, UK - Beach Ballroom Wed. Jul. 12 - Sheffield, UK - O2 Academy Sheffield Thu. Jul. 13 - Oxford, UK - O2 Academy Oxford Fri. Jul. 14 - Birmingham, UK - O2 Academy Birmingham Sat. Jul. 15 - Cardiff, UK - Great Hall, Cardiff University Students’ Union Mon. Jul. 17 - London, UK - The Roundhouse Tue. Jul. 18 - London, UK - The Roundhouse Wed. Jul. 19 - Brighton, UK - Brighton Dome Fri. Jul. 21 - Manchester, UK - Manchester Academy Sat. Jul. 22 - Cambridge, UK - Corn Exchange Fri. Aug. 18 - Trondheim, NO - Marinen Sat. Aug. 26 - Portsmouth, UK - Victorious Festival Fri. Sep. 01 - Lisbon, PT - Parque da Bela Vista Sat. Sep. 02 - Mijas, ES - La Cala de Mijas
Subscribe to the Sub Pop Singles Club Vol. 8 now to get twelve super-limited 7” vinyl records featuring exclusive music by today’s finest musicians! It’s limited to a mere 835 subscriptions, because it’s volume 8, and 2023 is Sub Pop’s 35th birthday! You’ll get 7”s by Thrash Palace, Gaye Su Akyol, Jessica Winter & Jonathan Snipes, Margarita Podridas, Brontez Purnell, Vanishing Twin, Suki Waterhouse, and more. And, to top it all off, you’ll get a lavish storage box, with art by @oldsweaty, to keep the records together.
You will get two singles in the mail roughly every other month, starting though February 2024. Computer users: fear not! You will also get digital downloads of the tracks through your Sub Pop Mega Mart account. Hear music from the series via the Singles Club playlist, and subscribe here.
Today, CHAI announce their dazzling new, self-titled album out September 22nd on Sub Pop / Sony Music, announce a Fall US tour in support of the new record, and present the album’s lead single, “PARA PARA.” Unlike their acclaimed 2021 album WINK, this self-titled collection of songs finds CHAI returning to their roots, drawing inspiration from their Japanese cultural heritage and the music that raised them. “Everything reflected in the lyrics expresses our experience as Japanese women,” vocalist/keyboardist MANA says, explaining why they chose to self-title this album. CHAI’s ethos is one of inclusion, and the previously shared “We The Female!” — recorded live off the floor to honor the band’s riotous performances — is “energetic and bright” (Stereogum), beckoning all listeners into the mission.
On “PARA PARA,” CHAI memorialize the bafflingly popular two-step dance trend that overtook Japan in the 1990s. “There’s not a deep meaning to that song, it’s really just about the dance,” says Mana. “As long as you can feel the two-step, any dance is possible! Let your body just move to your dancing heart ♡ When your body moves to the beat of your heart, you’ll realize that the world is smaller than you think, and all your problems are easier than they seem. ‘Cause two-step and music is the best way to communicate in this world ♡ Let it START! CHAI’s two-step dance music ☆☆”
The accompanying “PARA PARA”video, directed by Jennifer Juniper Stadford, premieres tonight at 9pm ET and honors the past, present, and future of art-rock and J-pop. Drawing influence from Yellow Magic Orchestra, Talking Heads and Devo, the “PARA PARA” video creates a new, fresh world where CHAI’s neo-kawaii movement takes center stage and inspires a strong future for everyone.
CHAI cast a spell on the world in 2017 when they released their debut album, PINK, a collection of songs that introduced listeners to their singular brand of playful pop. The jubilant and enthusiastically feminist follow-up, PUNK, raked in accolades from the music press and fellow artists alike. That led to WINK, which CHAI made via remote Zoom sessions, a limitation that became a strength since it allowed the quartet — twin sisters MANA (lead vocals and keys) and KANA (guitar), YUNA (drums), and YUUKI (bassist-lyricist) — to collaborate with artists abroad. On WINK, CHAI looked beyond their immediate surroundings, and the confines of home, to create a work that found catharsis in their international community.
Each CHAI album borrows aesthetic inspiration from specific musical movements, and on CHAI, the quartet wanted to make direct comparisons to city pop, a Tokyo-born sound popularized in the ‘70s and ‘80s. City pop was a Japanese take on Western lounge music, borrowing from jazz, boogie, funk, and yacht rock to create a sound that straddled two cultures. Only recently has city pop become a pop culture phenomenon in the U.S. — thanks in part to TikTok and YouTube exhuming songs by artists like Tatsuro Yamashita — but for CHAI, city pop was just the music of childhood.
A nostalgic look backward was, in part, circumstantial. When pandemic restrictions were lifted, CHAI returned to the road, bringing their exuberant live show to new cities, where the experience of performing for enormous crowds in cities like Santiago, Buenos Aires, and São Paulo made them realize they had truly unlocked a global audience. Realizing that their messages applied to people outside of Japan made CHAI consider what other facets of their upbringing might resonate with audiences outside of their home country.
CHAI — unlike previous albums — was written on the road, with the band finding time to record in the days between shows at Stones Throw Studio in LA, Ometusco Sound Machine in Mexico City, and Grand Street in New York. Working in studios with vast collections of gear allowed them to experiment with aesthetics as-yet-unheard on a CHAI album. “It was actually a chill and relaxed process, because we were playing shows every day and were really in the music,” MANA says.
In writing sessions, the members of CHAI listed words immediately associated with Japan, resulting in songs with titles like “MATCHA” and “KARAOKE.” Some terms are less immediate, but no less authentic to the country’s cultural heritage. They tapped previous collaborator Ryu Takahashi to produce, who shared their love of city pop and eurobeat, as well as the melodies of J-pop artists like Maria Takeuchi, which also contributed to the CHAI moodboard. “They wanted to dig into their Japanese identity, not in a traditional sense, but in this filtered Western way,” Takahashi says.
CHAI highlight “GAME” might be the perfect distillation of CHAI’s ethic, though, as it urges listeners to keep moving through this life with joy and passion. Per MANA: “It’s not about winning or losing as competition, but about what you need to do, personally, to feel you’ve won.”
Of the album, Mana says: “This is CHAI! With our self-titled album CHAI, CHAI declare that we live proudly as Japanese women♡ We hope this album gives everyone a little more confidence in living how they want to live. That is our ideal. If this album becomes that existence for anyone, that is the right answer in our eyes⭐ Listen, feel We give you our evolution, inside and out! Now come onnn, NEO-KAWAII BABIES. If you can’t catch up with us, you’ll never feel the NEO KAWAII♡”
CHAI US TOUR DATES
Sat. Sept. 23 - Boise, ID @ Flipside Festival
Sun. Sept. 24 - Seattle, WA @ Tractor Tavern
Mon. Sept. 25 - Portland, OR @ Doug Fir Lounge
Wed. Sept. 27 - San Francisco, CA @ The Independent
Fri. Sept. 29 - Los Angeles, CA @ Teragram Ballroom
Today, June 14th, marks the release of Foam, the debut EP from Stockholm-based artist waterbaby, available on all DSPs worldwide from Sub Pop.
The five-song collection which features the gorgeous new single “Wishing well,” along with the acclaimed standouts “Airforce blue” and “911,” were written by waterbaby and Marcus White, executive produced and mixed by White, and mastered by Johan Åkerström at Cosmos Mastering, all in Stockholm, Sweden.
waterbaby’s hypnotic and evocative technopastoral songs has led to international acclaim, including the cover of Sweden’s music magazine GAFFA, along with the New York Times, The Guardian, NME, Stereogum, The FADER, Brooklyn Vegan, PASTE, The FACE, and CLASH, and major radio support in Sweden from P3 and in the UK from BBC Radio 1.
What people are saying about waterbaby: “The emergency number in Stockholm, the home of the songwriter who calls herself waterbaby, is 112. But in this drowsily understated bedroom-pop song, she clearly has an eye on an American audience: “Call me when you need someone/I could be your 911,” she sings, adding “we-ooh, we-ooh” like a two-note emergency siren. It’s a tentative, guarded offer of affection — “Maybe we could go somewhere/Maybe we could be something” — sung breathily and hesitantly, trying to keep expectations modest.” “The Playlist” - THE NEW YORK TIMES
“Under the gaze of auto-tuned vocals and alt-rock textures, waterbaby has forged something wholly original and swing.” [“911”] - PASTE
“I was a big fan of ‘Airforce blue,’ the indie-pop-ish, R&B-ish Stockholm singer waterbaby’s first single for Sub Pop. I’m an even bigger fan of the next one. “911,” out today, heralds the impending arrival of waterbaby’s Foam EP. It’s a low-key love song built around a cozy little acoustic guitar figure that plays as a nest for waterbaby’s soft, digitally affected vocals.” - STEREOGUM
“The intoxicating meeting point of Beabadoobee, SZA, and Outkast, Stockholm-based Sub-Pop signee Waterbaby has made an impressive introduction as an artist of subtle flourishes, capturing the quiet intensity of love and heartbreak through lead single ‘Airforce Blue’, and now, ‘911’” “45’s of the Week” - THE FORTY-FIVE
“Airforce blue” flips waterbaby’s indie R&B into an electrified, auto-tuned collage with an easy intimacy.” - BROOKLYN VEGAN
“An unguarded DIY R&B moment coming out of the Swedish capital. (“Airforce blue”)” - THE FADER
“‘Airforce blue,’ waterbaby’s first single for Sub Pop, wouldn’t sound out of place on SZA’s genre-jumping S.O.S., but like many SZA songs it doesn’t really scan as R&B. It’s like a more lo-fi, chillwavey cousin to Post Malone’s soft-rocking ‘Circles,’ as if filtered through Clairo’s bedroom indie-pop, with a trace of hyperpop in her Auto-Tuned voice. The result is something slightly uncanny yet tender and personal. Good song.” - STEREOGUM
“Bedroom pop at a cosmic scale: documenting the aftermath of a breakup, the Stockholm artist’s Sub Pop debut has the offbeat and genre-warped charm of Frank Ocean and SZA.” “Playlist” - THE GUARDIAN
“‘Airforce blue’ flips waterbaby’s indie R&B into an electrified, auto-tuned collage with an easy intimacy.” - BROOKLYN VEGAN
”[‘Airforce blue’] is a real jewel, a thrilling and evocative slice of future-facing pop.” “Track of the Day” - CLASH
waterbaby Foam EP
Tracklisting: 1. Airforce blue 2. My luv 3. 911 4. Born too late 5. Wishing well
