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May 02, 2017 By Christopher Roberts The Drums

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The Drums are releasing a new album, “Abysmal Thoughts” (the quote marks are part of the title), on June 16 via ANTI-. Previously they shared its first single, “Blood Under My Belt,” as well as a video for the song. Now they have shared another song from it, “Heart Basel.” Listen below, followed by The Drums’ upcoming tour dates.

Jonny Pierce had this to say about the song in a press release: “I went through the most significant breakup of my life during the making of “Abysmal Thoughts.” During that vulnerable period, I attached myself to this guy who did not care at all for my feelings, but was good at pretending that he did. In retrospect, I think I knew deep down that he didn’t give a shit about me. But I continued to let him treat me like garbage because I thought if I had this handsome guy with me that somehow I wasn’t doing too bad. Of course now - with some professional help - I see that I was just lacking self-love and while it’s unhealthy to stay in that headspace for very long, it does make for good songwriting. ‘Heart Basel’ is a song about him treating me ‘kindly’ at Art Basel in Miami and then treating me like garbage after he got what he needed. You live and you sometimes learn.”

“Abysmal Thoughts” is the follow-up to 2014’s Encyclopedia. Since that album guitarist Jacob Graham has left the band, leaving only frontman Jonny Pierce. Pierce home-recorded the album for a year and three months in Los Angeles and at his cabin in upstate New York, with assistance from engineer Jonathan Schenke (Parquet Courts, Mannequin Pussy). Pierce wrote all the songs and played every instrument on the album. A previous press release describes the album as such: “It is a vivid self-portrait, alive with the hyperdramatic emotional potency of The Smiths, the arch literary pop moves of New Zealanders like The Verlaines and The Clean, and the riotous clatter-punk power of the U.K. DIY bands of 1979.”

The album is borne out of heartbreak, as Pierce explained in the press release: “I said I wanted to let life happen? Well, the universe listened and life began to fuck me real good! But honestly, I make the worst art when I’m comfortable. The stuff that resonates with me the longest - and that resonates with others - is always the stuff that comes out of my misery…. Happiness can be confusing to me. It shows up out of nowhere, and before you can even get used to it, it’s vanished. But “Abysmal Thoughts”? I can rely on them - and with the political chaos that is raining down, who knows when these dark feelings will subside?”

Pick up or download Under the Radar‘s current print issue, the Spring 2017 Issue, to read our new interview with The Drums’ Jonny Pierce.

The Drums Tour Dates:

July 17th: Neumos - Seattle, WA
July 18th: Venue - Vancouver, BC
July 19th: Wonder Ballroom - Portland, OR
July 21st: The Fillmore - San Francisco, CA
July 22nd & 23rd: FYF Festival - Los Angeles, CA
July 30th: Wayhome Music and Arts Festival - Oro-Medonte, ON
August 3rd: Lollapalooza - Chicago, IL
September 14th: Teatro Barcelo - Madrid, Spain
September 15th: Razmatazz - Barcelona, Spain
September 16th: Donostia Kutxa Kultur Festibala - San Sebastian, Spain
September 18th: Latteria Molloy - Brescia, Italy
September 19th: Les Docks - Lausanne, Switzerland
September 20th: La Gaite Lyrique - Paris, France
September 24th: Pumperhuset - Copenhagen, Denmark
September 25th: Parkteateret - Oslo, Norway
September 26th: Kraken - Stockholm, Sweden
September 28th: Lido - Berlin, Germany
September 29th: Orangerie - Brussels, Belgium
September 30th: Paradiso Noord - Amsterdam, Holland
October 2nd: Thekla - Bristol, UK
October 3rd: Whelans - Dublin, Ireland
October 4th: Gorilla - Manchester, UK
October 5th: Art School - Glasgow, UK
October 7th: o2 Shepherds Bush Empire - London, UK

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