The Drums announce new record ‘Abysmal Thoughts’, Share New Single – Listen!

Indie pop band The Drums have announced their return with a dreamy new single, ‘Blood Under My Belt‘, and the promise of a new album, ‘Abysmal Thoughts‘, this summer. The album is due out June 16th via ANTI-, The Drums’ first with the label. ‘Abysmal Thoughts‘ will be the follow-up to 2014’s ‘Encyclopedia‘ which spawned such hits as ‘Magic Mountain‘ and ‘I Can’t Pretend‘. Since the last LP, guitarist and founding member Jacob Graham left the band leaving behind only frontman Jonny Pierce. Pierce who wrote all the songs and played every instrument on this album explains the nature of the album 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?“

The album was home-recorded in Los Angeles and at Pierce’s cabin in upstate New York with help from engineer Jonathan Schenke (Parquet Courts, Mannequin Pussy). ‘Abysmal Thoughts‘ has been described as “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.” See below for the album’s tracklist and listen to the first single, ‘Blood Under My Belt‘.