I’ve always been an admirer of Holy Fuck’s electrogrunge flannel-dance vibe (I’m coining that, btw), but when someone over at The Line of Best Fit wrote that Brian Borcherdt had a “dreamier” voice than Neil Young, I became violently angry and heaved a half-drunk cup of coffee at a smug little squirrel that was eyeing me down outside my office window. I mean, that’s borderline heresy — have they never even HEARD the Canadian folk god croon the lucid poetry of “Long May You Run”?!? Unreal.
I will say, however, that I am a fan of Borcherdt’s quasi folk-haze solo project Dusted, and was mildly enthralled to hear that he’ll be releasing a follow-up to the 2012 debut LP Total Dust, which was a nice little record of (as the Most Trusted Voice in Music™ so eloquently voices it) “subtle gestures.”
The new album, entitled Blackout Summer, will be previewed with a live performance at NYC’s Rockwood Music Hall on March 6, exactly one month prior to the full April 6 release on Polyvinyl Records.
Insiders are saying the album will be a “dream-like production” that winds through “floating ambience and dark, moody rockers, [with every] disparate moment somehow feeling connected.” This sounds perfect for me and my current situation, as I’ve been looking for a soundtrack to backdrop the mild depression that’s been manifesting lately as a result of already fucking up my New Year’s resolution(s).
In any regard, the record is already available for pre-order over at Polyvinyl, and you can check out the first single, “Backwoods Ritual,” down below — a boot-tapping, pastel throwback jam that’s probably about as sanguine as a Brian Borcherdt tune can get. Enjoy it responsibly, and, you know: try not to get tooooBlacked-out this Summer. (Oof. Sorry.)
Blackout Summer tracklisting:
01. Seasons
02. Backwoods Ritual
03. All I Am
04. Cut Corners
05. Dead Eyes
06. Will Not Disappear
07. No Prison
08. Five Hundred and Four
09. Outline of a Wolf