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Feb 03, 2021 By Caleb Campbell Photography by Jessica Hurst Pardoner

Pardoner, like many a slacker rock band before them, was born in a dorm room. The core trio of Max Freeland, Trey Flanigan, and River van den Berghe met in 2015 at San Francisco State University and quickly began honing their sound, bringing together slacker attitude with the pummeling feel of hardcore. Though the band started getting attention with 2017’s Uncontrollable Salvation and 2019’s Playin’ On A Cloud, their run nearly was cut short when Freeland moved to Canada.

Fortunately for fans, the band have now returned as a four-piece, sporting longtime friend Colin Burris on bass. What’s more, the band, newly signed with Bar None Records, have returned with an upcoming record. Recorded over a whirlwind two days, Pardoner’s new LP, Came Down Different, has much of the same caustic feel of their previous work but with newfound attention paid to offbeat hooks and angular grooves. The band have now shared their first single and video from the album, “Donna Said,” debuting with Under the Radar.

“Donna Said,” the record’s opener quickly reintroduces the band’s biting style, opening on a sour, distortion-laden sample. The band then kicks into gear with some Pavement-esque verses, drenched in sardonic wit. Freeman sings over the track’s jangly hook, “I got feelings and guitar / I wanna trade it for cash,” showing off the band’s sharp melodic sensibilities before launching into some blown-out, shredding guitar. The band perfectly splits the difference between jagged walls of guitar, jangly ‘90s college rock, and an upbeat pop melody, finding an enthralling balance that’s all their own.

The band says of the song, “‘Donna Said’ is about wanting to get paid to rock. We wanted the song sonically and content-wise to be like a normal pop track with some underlying menace- it’s nice and upbeat, and we’d love for you to listen to it.”

Katayoon, the accompanying video’s director, goes on to say, “I wanted to see what would happen if I erased people from the video. Presence is a commodity - especially right now when all our experiences are so immaterial. I created an alternate reality Shopping Channel to show the contrast between material / immaterial, and hopefully to sell a few things in the process.” Check out the song and video below and watch for Came Done Different, coming May 14 via Bar None Records.