Tiny Mix Tapes

Zola Jesus announces new album Okovi, drops first single “Exhumed”

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It feels a bit strange to be calling a person born in 1989 veteran songwriter, but that’s exactly what Nika Roza Danilova (or is it Nicole Hummel?) is at this point. The enigmatic Zola Jesus has shared a new single, titled “Exhumed,” and announced the release of her fifth proper LP. Okovi, which means “shackles” in certain Slavic languages, will be out September 8 via Sacred Bones.

According to Zola Jesus, the deeply personal album “was fed by [a] return to roots and several very personal traumas;” before writing it, she pulled a total Bon Iver by building a house in the woods of Wisconsin, “just steps away from where [her] dilapidated childhood tree fort is slowly recombining into earth.” Although Zola Jesus is primarily a solo vehicle for Danilova, longtime friend and collaborator Alex DeGroot, as well as producer/musician WIFE, cellist/noise-maker Shannon Kennedy (of Pedestrian Deposit), and percussionist Ted Byrnes “all helped build Okovi’s textural universe.”

Almost immediately after releasing Okovi, Zola Jesus will embark on a two month North American tour. Check out the dates, listen to “Exhumed,” and glance over the forthcoming LP’s tracklist below:


Okovi tracklisting:

01. Doma
02. Exhumed
03. Soak
04. Ash to Bone
05. Witness
06. Siphon
07. Veka
08. Wiseblood
09. NMO
10. Remains
11. Half Life

Zola Jesus tour dates:

09.16.17 - Hudson, NY - Basilica Soundscape
09.21.17 - San Diego, CA - Casbah
09.22.17 - Phoenix, AZ - Valley Bar
09.23.17 – Santa Fe, NM - Meow Wolf
09.25.17 - Dallas, TX - Kessler Theater
09.26.17 - Austin, TX - North Door
09.27.17 - New Orleans, LA – Siberia
09.28.17 - Atlanta, GA - Aisle 5
09.29.17 - Asheville, NC - The Mothlight
09.30.17 - Washington, DC - U Street
10.01.17 - Boston, MA - ICA Boston
10.03.17 - Philadelphia, PA - PhilaMOCA
10.04.17 - Brooklyn, NY - Rough Trade
10.06.17 - Toronto, ON - Longboat Hall
10.07.17 - Detroit, MI - Assemble Sound Church
10.08.17 - Chicago, IL - Thalia Hall
10.09.17 - Madison, WI - Majestic Theatre
10.10.17 - St. Paul, MN - Amsterdam Bar & Hall
10.11.17 - Omaha, NE - Waiting Room
10.14.17 - Salt Lake City, UT - Amsterdam Bar & Hall
10.16.17 - Oakland, CA - Starline Social Club
10.17.17 - San Francisco, CA – Independent
10.19.17 - Seattle, WA – Crocodile
10.20.17 - Portland, OR - The Old Church
10.21.17 - Vancouver, BC – Venue
11.07.17 - London, UK - Village Underground