Sub Pop has signed Aeon Station, the new project from Kevin Whelan of The Wrens to release Observatory, the group’s debut record, worldwide on December 10th, 2021. The 10-track album came together carefully for Whelan, over the course of 14 years, specifically, as clusters of demos and sketches. These were eventually assembled and recorded largely by Whelan himself, with assistance from Wrens’ bandmates Jerry MacDonald and Greg Whelan, as well as Tom Beaujour in his Union City recording space. Additionally, his wife Mary Ann provided backup vocals.
On the group’s debut single, “Queens” you can hear the pounding build to a truly thrilling climax of huge guitars and frantic drumming. Whelan shares, “This song was inspired by one of my all-time favorite songs, “The Winner Takes it All” by ABBA. It’s about betting on the real you. Like a game of high-stakes poker, you push all your chips to the center of the table and aren’t afraid to go “all in.” It starts with a solo vocal, framing the story to come, the drums then propel the song forward, with a force working its way to a climax of a repeating line - “You said it was all in.” You can listen to “Queens” by clicking here
About Observatory: Aeon Station’s Observatory is an epic statement more than a decade in the making, with miles of timeless melodies and the kind of overpowering songwriting that will reaffirm your belief in life itself. Longtime Wrens member Kevin Whelan’s first solo album draws heavily from the perseverance of the soul, resulting in rock music possessing an infectious and inspiring sonic uplift. If you’re familiar with Whelan’s past work, these ten tracks bear a certain and unmistakable familiarity—but they also mark an exciting new chapter in Whelan’s musical career, as he steps out with more vulnerability than ever before.
Observatory came together carefully for Whelan—over the course of 14 years, specifically, as clusters of demos and sketches were eventually assembled and recorded largely by Whelan himself, with assistance from Wrens’ bandmate Jerry MacDonald and Greg Whelan as well as Tom Beaujour in his Union City recording space. Additionally, his wife Mary Ann provided backup vocals. “It’s the best I’ve done and may ever do frankly,” Whelan states. “It’s written over such a long period of my life. Music I did in the past was tinged with expectations or presumptions, but this time, it was just for me.”
The long gestation of Observatory means that a lot of lived experience went into making this album. As time passed, Whelan got married, started a family, and moved to the Asia Pacific region for a period of time; at 15 months old, his son (now eight) was also diagnosed with autism, and the title of Observatory itself is inspired by Whelan’s own relationship with his son. “The moment you’re told your child is not ‘neurotypical,’ your whole world expands in ways you never imagined,” he explains. “Even though he doesn’t speak much at all, or look at anyone directly, you can see him observing everything around him. The album title reflects upon the stories within the songs — each one observing a certain situation or feeling.”
Whelan’s scope of musical vision on Observatory is wide open and free with possibilities—at once recalling the reflective wisdom of Bruce Springsteen, Broken Social Scene’s huge anthemic burn, and the Wrens’ own pulsing-with-life take on rock music. Above all, this is music not only for dreamers but for those who realize and appreciate the enormity of every moment. “It’s about never letting go about those dreams and your passion,” he states. “The album starts from a place of realizing that everything is temporary, what we love eventually changes or leaves us, and regardless we continue to search and find our way back home.”
The pounding “Queens” builds to a truly thrilling climax of huge guitars and frantic drumming, while the steady build of “Leaves” is accompanied by Whelan’s reflections on “Being lost and then found”: “It musically captures the album as it starts small and intimate, crescendos into a peak both musically and lyrically, and then settles down into a repeating mode of a hopeful but uncertain mantra about the future,” he explains while discussing the song’s themes and creation.
Then there are the gleaming harmonies of “Fade,” a song about breaking past your own insecurities to discover what’s on the other side. “Whether you limit yourself because of your own fears and insecurities, or because what others think and say,” Whelan says, “The song is about when you stop waiting and start believing deeper in your own path.” Observatory ends with the hushed and lush “Alpine Drive,” with Whelan’s voice lit by pinwheel plucked piano strings—a tender moment that packs as much power as the nine songs that come before it.
“I hope people feel a sense of strength when they hear this album,” he states while discussing his artistic aims as a whole. “Most importantly, I hope that it connects to them in some personal way.” And if you’ve ever caught air in your lungs or felt your heart beating in your chest, there’s no doubt that you’ll find some level of connection with Observatory’s open-hearted, instantly classic-sounding rock.
Aeon Station
Observatory
Tracklisting:
1. Hold On 2. Leaves 3. Fade 4. Everything at Once 5. Move 6. Queens 7. Empty Rooms 8. Air 9. Better Love 10. Alpine Drive
The North American deluxe edition on clear vinyl is now available. The deluxe packaging will include a 24-page hardcover LP-sized book with covers featuring a sci-fi landscape populated by a toddler-wearing artist Merritt Johnson’s sculpture Mindset, a VR headset woven from sweetgrass. The interior art was designed by Galanin. This deluxe edition will be available while supplies last.
Ya Tseen’s Nicholas Galanin is one of the most vital voices in contemporary art. His work spans sculpture, video, installation, photography, jewelry, and music; advocating for Indigenous sovereignty, racial, social, and environmental justice, for present, and future generations. For Galanin, memory and land are inevitably entwined. His most recent installation for Desert X 2021, on view through May 16, 2021, entitled Never Forget has garnered international media acclaim including from outlets such as The New York Times, TheLos Angeles Times, The Desert Sun, Galerie Magazine, and Time Out. The 45-foot letters of Never Forget reference the Hollywood sign, which initially spelled out HOLLYWOODLAND and was erected to promote a whites-only development. Its timing coincided with a development in Palm Springs that also connected to the film industry: Studio contracts limited actors’ travel, contributing to the city’s rise as a playground and refuge of the stars. Meanwhile, the white settler mythology of America as the land of the free, home of the brave was promoted in the West, and the landscape was cinematized through the same lens. Never Forget asks settler landowners to participate in the work by transferring land titles and management to local Indigenous communities. The work is a call to action and a reminder that land acknowledgments become only performative when they do not explicitly support the land back movement. Not only does the work transmit a shockwave of historical correction, but also promises to do so globally through social media. In connection with this installation, Galanin has organized a Go Fund Me account to benefit the Native American Land Conservancy (NALC.) You can contribute here.
Ya Tseen Indian Yard
Tracklisting: 1. Knives (feat. Portugal. The Man) 2. Light the Torch 3. Born into Rain (feat. rum.gold and tunia) 4. At Tugáni 5. Get Yourself Together 6. Close the Distance 7. We Just Sit and Smile Here in Silence 8. A Feeling Undefined (feat. Nick Hakim and Iska Dhaaf) 9. Synthetic Gods (feat. Shabazz Palaces and Stas THEE Boss) 10. Gently to the Sun (feat. Tay Sean) 11. Back in That Time (feat. Qacung)
On the heels of TV Priest’s acclaimed debut album, Uppers, comes “Lifesize,” a new single from the group and their contribution to the Sub Pop Singles Club, Vol. 6.
The group’s frontman, Charlie Drinkwater says of the song,“‘Lifesize’ is about the worship of the ‘strong man’ image often present in our political and cultural discourse. One where the patriarchal underpinnings of our society and political structure goes unchallenged. After a particularly gruelling year, when people have looked to leaders for strength, we’ve found instead empty gestures and contempt. (‘Talk like a salesman, walks like the Pope.’) We don’t need more macho bravado; society needs empathy and compassion.”
“Lifesize” will also be released with one additional track on a 7” single as part of the Sub Pop Singles Club Vol. 6. The subscription-only series includes twelve 7” singles by an exciting array of artists, including John Waters, Jeff Tweedy, Duma, LIDS, Washed Out, Hand Habits, BNH Deluxe, Porridge Radio, Sheltered Workshop Singers, and more. Only 1,000 subscriptions are available, and the series is nearly sold out. Hear music from the series via the Singles Club playlist, and subscribe here!
Having played festivals curated by the likes of IDLES and Sports Team, as well as Manchester Psych Fest this summer, TV Priest will return to the stages of the UK and France this October and November, with appearances at Sirens Festival in Glasgow and Edinburgh as well as the Pitchfork Festival in Paris. The band will then share the stage with A Place to Bury Strangers in North America in early 2022. See below for a full listing of dates, with more headline shows and news of their forthcoming record to be announced soon.
Fall 2021 Fri. Oct. 01 - Ipswich, UK - Ipswich Sound City Sat. Oct. 09 - Reading, UK - Are You Listening Tue. Oct. 19 - London, UK - Shacklewell Arms [Sold Out] Thu. Oct. 21- Birmingham, UK - Hare & Hound Fri. Oct. 22 - Blackpool, UK - Bootleg Social Sat. Oct. 23 - Hull, UK - New Adelphi Club Sun. Oct. 24 - Newcastle upon Tyne, UK - Head of Steam Tue. Oct. 26 - Nottingham, UK - Bodega Wed. Oct. 27 - Cardiff, Wales, UK - Clwb Ifor Bach (Upstairs room) Thu. Oct. 28 - Bedford, UK - Bedford Esquires Fri. Oct. 29 - Manchester, UK - YES (Basement Room) [Sold Out] Sat. Oct. 30 - Leeds, UK - Belgrave Music Hall [Sold Out] Sun. Oct. 31 - Sheffield, UK - Sidney & Matilda, Sheffield City Centre Tue. Nov. 02 - Bristol, UK - Rough Trade (Bristol) [Sold Out] Wed. Nov. 03 - London, UK - Moth Club [Sold Out] Thu. Nov. 04 - Southampton, UK - Heartbreakers Sat. Nov. 06 - Brighton, UK - Mutations Festival Sat. Nov. 13 - Glasgow, UK - Sirens Festival (Glasgow) Sun. Nov. 14 - Edinburgh, UK - Sirens Festival (Edinburgh) Wed. Nov. 17 - Lille, FR - L’Aeronef Thu. Nov. 18 - Le Havre, FR - Le Tetris Fri. Nov. 19 - Paris, FR - Pitchfork Music Festival Sat. Nov. 20 - Nantes, FR - Stereolux
Winter 2022 Fri. Feb. 11 - Seattle, WA - Neumos * Sat. Feb. 12 - Portland, OR - Mississippi Studios * Sun. Feb. 13 - Vancouver, BC - Rickshaw Theater (BC) * Tue. Feb. 15 - San Francisco, CA - The Chapel (Preservation Hall West) * Wed. Feb. 16 - Los Angeles, CA - Teragram Ballroom * Fri. Feb. 18 - San Diego, CA - Soda Bar * Tue. Feb. 22 - Denver, CO - Larimer Lounge * Fri. Feb. 25 - Nashville, TN - High Watt * Sat. Feb. 26 - Atlanta, GA - 529 * Tue. Mar. 01 - Brooklyn, NY - Union Pool * w/ A Place To Bury Strangers
What people have been saying about TV Priest: “Fuzzed-out post punk from London four-piece on debut LP… harsh, brittle eruptions offering up a variety of teeth-rattling noises.” [Uppers] Uncut
Ragged yet tight, sprawling yet focussed, it’s a singular vision of a disparate time. It rounds up most of the usual suspects of our Un-UK, the pop culture, the insularity, the lies on the side of a bus, but manages to breathe new life into those old tropes by sheer force of personality. [Uppers] ★★★★ - DORK
“Uppers…should rubber stamp TV Priest as one of, if not your favourite new act” - The Line Of Best Fit
“The post-punk band have caught attention with a string of superb singles, exemplifying their scorching post-punk sound.” - CLASH
“Vocalist Charlie Drinkwater scrolls endlessly as his country fades into irrelevance on British band TV Priest’s latest fiery missive.” [“This Island”] - The FADER
“They fit in with the post-punk revival - sultry, prophetic lyricism with brash instrumentation…” [“This Island”] - Brooklyn Vegan
“Scorching” [“This Island”] - DIY
“The track’s distorted organs serve as riled-up opening remarks before gruelling dark vocals spit out patriotic cliches and commemorative Latin phrases. “This is not my national anthem” sneers Charlie Drinkwater over a fuzzy echo of the Star-Spangled Banner. Thrashing industrial guitars smash any sense of security.” [“House of York”] - The Line Of Best Fit
“’This Island’ is a densely packed ball of energy, and their occasional spillovers of momentum are exhilarating.” - PASTE
HEY WHAT, the enthralling new Low album, is out now on CD/LP/CS/DSPs on Sub Pop. HEY WHAT and its previously released singles “Days Like These,” “Disappearing” and “More” have earned the group raves from the likes of The New York Times, Pitchfork, Rolling Stone,Beats Per Minute, Brooklyn Vegan, CLASH, DIY, The Guardian, The Line of Best Fit, MOJO, NPR Music, PASTE, Uncut, SPIN, Stereogum, Under the Radar, and more.
A new video, directed by Shane Donahue, for “White Horses,” the first song from the new Low album, marks the release of HEY WHAT.
Low’s international headlining dates in support of HEY WHAT for the US, UK and EU have been announced. For a full list of shows click here.
What people are saying about HEY WHAT:
9/10, “Album of the Month,” UNCUT 9/10 CLASH 8.6/10 PASTE 8.4/10, “Best New Music,” Pitchfork ★★★★ The Guardian ★★★★ MOJO “Album of the Week” Stereogum
★★★★★ The Skinny
5/5 NARC 9/10 Northern Transmissions 8/10 EXCLAIM! ★★★★ Slant “Album of the Week” Treble “An instant classic.” Uproxx
“It is easy to make music that is difficult and it is easy to make music that is beautiful. But it is quite the trick to be both at the same time, on HEY WHAT, Low mark themselves out as masters of”It is easy to make music that is difficult and it is easy to make music that is beautiful. But it is quite the trick to be both at the same time, on HEY WHAT, Low mark themselves out as masters of the art.” [9/10, “ Album of the Month”] -UNCUT
“A potential classic that surprises at every turn…” [9/10] - CLASH
“…A visceral treatise on modern-day existential dread.” [8.6/10] - PASTE
“HEY WHAT’s refinements make it clear that they are still finding fresh angles on the same themes that have animated them since the beginning: using minimalism to express the entwined pairing of intimacy and loneliness, searching for meaning in the rubble after a departure too catastrophic to address by name.” [8.4/10, “Best New Music”] - Pitchfork
“The people behind HEY WHAT are redefining how a rock band can sound.” [“Album of the Week”] ★★★★ - The Guardian
“The information exchange attains a near-perfect equilibrium between sanctified melody and distress signals… After almost 30 years documenting the bittersweet mysteries of life, this one’s for the angels.” ★★★★ - MOJO
“Just as Double Negative offered a catharsis of the confusion and despair that many felt in 2018, as a whole HEY WHAT promises hurt and healing in equal measure, its abrasive textures the companion to undeniable warmth, tenderness, and optimism.” - The Wire
“An instant classic that culminates and sharpens their previous experiments for an overwhelming emotional experience.” - UPROXX
“The world might be broken, and so might we all, but Low keep on straining towards transcendence. Remarkably, nearly 30 years into their career, they seem to have achieved it yet again.” [Album of the Week] - Stereogum
“It’s safe to say that no one is making music that sounds remotely similar to what Low is giving us.” [8/10] - EXCLAIM!
“The loud, bold melodies on HEY WHAT reach out, grab you, and demand your attention, and then they shower you with a rush of euphoria.” - Brooklyn Vegan
“HEY WHAT redefines ‘extraordinary.’” - Prog
“A record worth cherishing” - Loud & Quiet
“To be making music that can truly surprise you 13 albums and 28 years into a career is a testament to Alan Sparhawk and Mimi Parker’s continued dedication to their craft.” ★★★★★ - The Skinny
“The maximalism of HEY WHAT leaves more room for brightness and even optimism, its distorted and texturally jagged structures rendered in perfect harmony with the space and possibilities that surround them.” [“Album of the Week”] - Treble
“Rarely does a record seem to wholly capture the people behind it. Rarely is a record this special.” [5/5] - NARC
“HEY WHAT finds the duo fully embracing sonic expressionism while further honing their impeccable songcraft.” ★★★★ - SLANT
“As with 2018’s Double Negative, it’s an affirmation of Low as a creative force that effortlessly fits into the shape of what stylistic container it’s placed in.” [9/10] - Northern Transmissions
“If Double Negative from 2018 proved that these indie lifers were still finding uncharted frontiers in their spacious sound nearly three decades into their band’s existence, this first taste of their forthcoming album HEY WHAT shows once again that they’re not finished discovering exhilaratingly new ways to sound exactly like themselves.” [“Days Like These”] - New York Times
“It’s simply three-and-a-half minutes of throbbing, unrequited yearning, Low at their very best, and it’s beautiful.” [“Disappearing”] – Rolling Stone
Tracklisting: 1. White Horses 2. I Can Wait 3. All Night 4. Disappearing 5. Hey 6. Days Like These 7. There’s a Comma After Still 8. Don’t Walk Away 9. More 10. The Price You Pay (It Must Be Wearing Off
This past spring, CHAI released their new album WINK via Sub Pop. On WINK, the “scrappiness of Chai’s early records is peeled back to reveal a dreamier collection of melodies driven by Yuna’s sprightly and varied drumming” (New York Times), and their recently-released Adult Swim single “miniskirt” falls into this sound. Today, they share an accompanying video directed by Yoshika Matsuoka. CHAI consistently have an incredible, colorful aesthetic - and this new video is a hi-def presentation of their curated sets.
CHAI’s YUUKI elaborates: “We brainstormed everything, from the ideas to the plot, and with the director, we brought it all to life! This song’s keywords, ‘miniskirt’ and ‘showing off your skin,’ brought the vision for a battle between the miniskirt and long-skirt cliques. Our ‘fight for justice’ in the means of ‘kawaii’ may differ from ‘justice’ for others…and the thought of ‘kawaii,’ that never came to our minds, may actually be the door to opening something new…It’s a story of realization through battle! In the end, what we see is ‘NEO!’ Within this one life we get to live, let’s reinvent ourselves over and over again!”
PRAISE FOR WINK
“Chai is a professional purveyor of whimsy.” - New York Times
“One of CHAI’s greatest strengths is the Japanese band’s ability to weave between different genres, buoyed by their generous sense of humor and vibrantly catchy hooks” - Pitchfork
“challenging your expectations is a key tenet of this band.” - NPR Music
“Inspired by the varied genres they were listening to at home, WINK injects the effervescent energy of their past dance-punk work into funk, chiptune, and more.”
- Pitchfork
“This is the year CHAI breaks through like never before.” - Complex
“WINK looks to possess a glitzy, glossy appeal all its own, incorporating EDM and R&B in gleefully idiosyncratic ways.” - AV Club
