CHASTITY BELT's fifth album 'Live Laugh Love' encapsulates their journey of living, laughing, and... err... loving with sincerity and a touch of sarcasm. Check out new track 'Chemtrails' and read our latest Upset cover story.

Words: Linsey Teggert

Live Laugh Love. It's a phrase you'd likely associate with a tacky cursive wall sign or a cheesy wellness influencer, not an album title from one of Seattle's coolest indie bands. Yet for Chastity Belt's fifth album, it kind of makes sense: the four-piece have never taken themselves 100% seriously, but they've always been sincere, poking fun at themselves and the world around them, but in a way that feels authentic rather than glib. "It's kind of sarcastic but also earnest because if you think about it, the songs are sort of about living, laughing and loving," explains guitarist and vocalist Julia Shapiro.

In the fourteen years that they've been a band, they've certainly done a hell of a lot of living, laughing and loving to the point where they share both the same musical language and an unbreakable bond. Despite currently living in various states and even countries - Julia and drummer Gretchen Grimm are both based in Seattle, bass player Annie Truscott lives in LA, and guitarist Lydia Lund is currently studying in London - Chastity Belt didn't let distance or a pandemic get in the way of creating their fifth record. It may have taken them almost five years to finish, but there was no rush or worry. It was always inevitable.

"At this point, it feels like we'll be together forever, so I don't think not creating another record ever crossed any of our minds," Julia states. "We all have an unspoken agreement that we'll keep doing the band at whatever pace feels good for people. I realise that the last few years haven't been easy on other bands, but we felt this sense that we'd been together for so long that we were going to be okay at the end of this."