Yesterday Akron/Family premiered the first song on pitchfork from their forthcoming record, Sub Verses, out on Dead Oceans on April 30th (29th in the UK).
"No-Room" showcases the heavier, more direct sound of Sub Verses. Influenced, in part, by monumental land art installations and harnessed by producer Randall Dunn (Sunn 0))), Earth, Black Mountain, Wolves In The Throne Room etc…). In a sense it sees the band returning to their roots, revisiting the heavy physical impact, emotional confrontation, intensity, and musicality of their collaborations w/ Michael Gira of Swans. In a personal statement Gira had this to say about Sub Verses:
"We find [Akron/Family] rocking (still rocking), but now in a skittering kaleidoscope. The shards of music styles and influences flung through the speakers from all directions, congealing for a second, then just as quickly dissolving into something new and unexpected. They’re amphetamine-crazed jugglers of sound and texture, but there’s always those vocals, rooting the thing in a deep and satisfying place.
It seems to me lots of groups these days view the whole history of music as fair game for their palette, which might be understandable, since it’s all there at easy access now, but most of it seems like playing dress up to me, and certainly it exists in inverted commas.
There are no inverted commas in the world of AK. They’re inside the music, grinding it, fighting it, chewing it, digesting it, then spewing it up to the sky in a multicolored spray of endless sound and love."
The album’s art was created by Sunn 0))) guitarist Stephen O’Malley, whose graphic design has appeared on records from Boris & The Melvins to Oneohtrix Point Never. Visit the Akron/Family Tumblr for more insight on the visual influences that informed the work.
Sub Verses artwork by Stephen O’Malley
Sub Verses
1. No-Room
2. Way Up
3. Until the Morning
4. Sand Talk
5. Sometimes I
6. Holy Boredom
7. Sand Time
8. Whole World is Watching
9. When I was Young
10. Samurai
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Tour Dates:
01/29/13 Santa Barbara, CA: Muddy Waters
01/30/13 La Jolla, CA: UCSD – The Loft
02/01/13 Sacramento, CA: Blue Lamp
02/02/13 San Francisco, CA: The Fillmore
03/09/13 Denton, TX: Dan’s Silverleaf (35 Denton)
03/13-16/13 Austin, TX: SXSW
04/09/13 Albuquerque, NM: Low Spirits
04/10/13 Denver, CO: Larimer Lounge
04/11/13 Lawrence, KS: Jackpot Saloon
04/12/13 Iowa City, IA: Gabe’s Oasis
04/13/13 Minneapolis, MN: 7th St. Entry
04/14/13 Madison, WI: High Noon Saloon
04/16/13 Chicago, IL: Empty Bottle
04/17/13 Cincinnati, OH: MOTR Pub
04/18/13 Ann Arbor, MI: The Blind Pig
04/19/13 Toronto, ON: Lee’s Palace
04/20/13 Montreal, QC: Il Motore
04/21/13 Allston, MA: Brighton Music Hall
04/24/13 New York, NY: Bowery Ballroom
04/25/13 Philadelphia, PA: Johnny Brenda’s
04/26/13 Washington, DC: U Street Music Hall
04/27/13 Asheville, NC: Grey Eagle
04/28/13 Durham, NC: Motorco Music Hall
04/29/13 Atlanta, GA: Drunken Unicorn
04/30/13 Birmingham, AL: The Bottletree
05/01/13 Baton Rouge, LA: Spanish Moon
05/03/13 Austin, TX: Red 7
05/04/13 Dallas, TX: Club Dada
05/06/13 Phoenix, AZ: The Crescent Ballroom
05/08/13 Los Angeles, CA: The Echo
