Preoccupations announce new album 'Ill at Ease'
The Canadian post-punk quartet have also shared new single 'Focus'.
Preoccupations have announced their fifth studio album 'Ill at Ease', set for release via Born Losers Records. The Canadian post-punk quartet have also shared new single 'Focus'.
The new track explores modern societal pressures through a darkwave-tinged lens, featuring INXS-inspired guitar work alongside frontman Matt Flegel's vocals. The single arrives accompanied by a music video comprising VHS footage of various cults and their leaders.
"Focus...or the lack thereof. Shame and regret: waking up with it, not being able to sleep because of it, and finally falling asleep and having nightmares about it," Flegel explains. "I put myself a thousand years in the future with these same feelings. While having so many better things to be worried about, as the world falls apart, still finding it impossible to look past meaningless misgivings."
The new track explores modern societal pressures through a darkwave-tinged lens, featuring INXS-inspired guitar work alongside frontman Matt Flegel's vocals. The single arrives accompanied by a music video comprising VHS footage of various cults and their leaders.
"Focus...or the lack thereof. Shame and regret: waking up with it, not being able to sleep because of it, and finally falling asleep and having nightmares about it," Flegel explains. "I put myself a thousand years in the future with these same feelings. While having so many better things to be worried about, as the world falls apart, still finding it impossible to look past meaningless misgivings."
'Ill at Ease' marks the band's first release since 2022's 'Arrangements' and their debut with Born Losers Records. The eight-track album draws inspiration from 80s and 90s nostalgia while maintaining the group's established post-punk sound.
Speaking about the album's themes, Flegel shares: "The well of dark things to write about seemingly has not dried up, and lyrically, it's where I still tend to draw from. Draining all my anxieties into a song is often the only way I can get through a day. Some songs exist in a world with barren plains of burnt earth, covered in a dust of shame, dread, death, where all the things I love are things that kill me."
The band's upcoming dates in full read:
MAY
22 Bar Le Ritz PDB, Montréal, Canada
23 The 27 Club, Ottawa, Canada
24 Lee's Palace, Toronto, Canada
27 Lager House, Detroit, USA
31 The Empty Bottle, Chicago, USA
JUNE
1 7th St Entry, Minneapolis, USA
4 Commonwealth, Calgary, Canada
6 Wise Hall, Vancouver, Canada
7 Madame Lou's, Seattle, USA
8 Polaris Hall, Portland, USA
10 Rickshaw Stop, San Francisco, USA
12 Lodge Room, Los Angeles, USA
13 Casbah, San Diego, USA
17 Parish, Austin, USA
18 Rubber Gloves, Denton, USA
20 The Blue Room-Third Man Records, Nashville, USA
21 The Masquerade(Purgatory), Atlanta, USA
22 Kings, Raleigh, USA
24 Songbyrd Record Cafe, Washington, USA
25 Johnny Brenda's, Philadelphia, USA
27 Bowery Ballroom, New York, USA
29 Middle East Upstairs, Cambridge, USA
Speaking about the album's themes, Flegel shares: "The well of dark things to write about seemingly has not dried up, and lyrically, it's where I still tend to draw from. Draining all my anxieties into a song is often the only way I can get through a day. Some songs exist in a world with barren plains of burnt earth, covered in a dust of shame, dread, death, where all the things I love are things that kill me."
The band's upcoming dates in full read:
MAY
22 Bar Le Ritz PDB, Montréal, Canada
23 The 27 Club, Ottawa, Canada
24 Lee's Palace, Toronto, Canada
27 Lager House, Detroit, USA
31 The Empty Bottle, Chicago, USA
JUNE
1 7th St Entry, Minneapolis, USA
4 Commonwealth, Calgary, Canada
6 Wise Hall, Vancouver, Canada
7 Madame Lou's, Seattle, USA
8 Polaris Hall, Portland, USA
10 Rickshaw Stop, San Francisco, USA
12 Lodge Room, Los Angeles, USA
13 Casbah, San Diego, USA
17 Parish, Austin, USA
18 Rubber Gloves, Denton, USA
20 The Blue Room-Third Man Records, Nashville, USA
21 The Masquerade(Purgatory), Atlanta, USA
22 Kings, Raleigh, USA
24 Songbyrd Record Cafe, Washington, USA
25 Johnny Brenda's, Philadelphia, USA
27 Bowery Ballroom, New York, USA
29 Middle East Upstairs, Cambridge, USA
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