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May 14, 2018 By Christopher Roberts Gang Gang Dance

Gang Gang Dance are releasing a new album, Kazuashita, on June 22 via 4AD. Kazuashita is the band’s first album in seven years, since 2011’s Eye Contact, and previously they shared its first single, “Lotus” (which was one of our Songs of the Week). Now they have shared another song from the album, “J-TREE.” Listen below.

Gang Gang Dance is Lizzi Bougatsos, Brian DeGraw, and Josh Diamond. DeGraw produced the album, which was recorded in several New York recording studios and art spaces and also features drummer Ryan Sawyer and Jorge Elbrecht (who contributed additional production and mixing duties).

DeGraw had this to say about the new song in a press release: “‘J-TREE’ has always been about open space to me. When I started writing the skeleton of the song I imagined it would only ever be played live in an outdoor setting. That was the goal: to create a song that was a sonic dialogue between ourselves and the majesty of wide open space in nature.”

The song features a spoken word sample of Shiyé Bidziil of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe speaking out against the construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline through sacred Native American burial lands. DeGraw had this to say about that: “The Shiyé sample captures a point in time that is not only a historical moment in the struggle of humankind within a state of heightened political chaos, but also a reminder that Nature is not passive. This sacred open space possesses its own active consciousness and when we are spiritually aligned with its frequency a very direct alliance occurs. The stampede of buffalo was a reaction from the higher powers of Nature in response to the cries of a people who were fighting to maintain that spiritual alliance. Standing Rock was essentially a standoff between beings who believe that money is God versus beings who believe that Nature is God. I think Shiyé‘s moment was an example of the natural world confirming that the latter is much closer to the truth.”

Gang Gang Dance Tour Dates:

June 22 - Elsewhere Brooklyn NY (RECORD RELEASE SHOW) w/ Deakin
Oct 23 - OSAKA w/ Deerhunter
Oct 24 - NAGOYA w/ Deerhunter
Oct 25 - TOKYO w/ Deerhunter

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