Genre Archives: Concerts

Lettuce

BAG POLICY

Bags (max size 12″ x 6″ x 12″) are allowed and will be searched upon entry. Exceptions will be made for necessary medical equipment and bags for nursing mothers. We encourage you to pack light with only the necessities to make the entry process as smooth as possible.

CASHLESS POLICY

We are a cashless facility meaning that we are unable to accept cash as a form of payment.

• Our Box Office, Coat Check, and Venue Merch will only accept credit and debit.

• Our Bars will only accept credit, debit, Apple Pay, and Google Pay.

Please note that artist merchandise sales are separate and may still accept cash.


ABOUT LETTUCE

Here it is, right on time.  Unify.  The eighth studio album from Lettuce, it’s also a third consecutive record made at Denver’s Colorado Sound Studios, completing a loose trilogy starting with 2019’s Grammy-nominated Elevate, and continuing with 2020’s Resonate.  “Dealing with the pandemic, being in separate places, trying to survive without our best friends, without touring, not to mention the political divide in this country,” says Lettuce drummer Adam Deitch.  “We really needed to unify.”

Reunited with Colorado Sound’s esteemed engineer, Jesse O’Brien, Unify is a totally collaborative effort full of the highest of highlights, including its centerpiece track “Keep That Funk Alive,” inspired by the venerable Parliament-Funkadelic bassist, Bootsy Collins, and featuring Collins on bass and vocals.  It’s, as well, a benchmark moment for the sextet- Adam Deitch (drums), Ryan Zoidis (saxophone), Adam Smirnoff (guitar), Erick Coomes (bass), Nigel Hall (keyboards/vocals), Eric ‘Benny’ Bloom (trumpet)- approaching thirty years since its humble Boston beginnings.

“We’re just getting tighter and tighter,” says Coomes.  “Really, these are the first records made with the six of us as a team, and it’s the best the band has ever been: live and in the studio; the funkiest and the most fun.”

16 songs.  Pure Lettuce.  Unify will teleport you to a funky galaxy far, far away, where all life coexists as one in peace, love, harmony, and music!

 

FOLLOW WIJAM on FACEBOOK

Dizney Dance Party

Based on the latest local guidelines, attendees are no longer required to provide proof of negative COVID-19 test AND/OR vaccination for entry into this event. Other shows on our calendar may still have specific health and safety requirements based on artist request.  Be sure to check our venue website for the latest updates and guidelines as entry requirements are subject to change.


Everybody in the club singing Dizney….

DJ Femme Noir and Sarah Akawa are hitting the decks with alllll your favorite D. Channel favorites including: Jonas Brothers, High School Musical, Cheetah Girls, Camp Rock, Selena Gomez, Miley Cyrus, Hillary Duff and more. Plus sing-a-longs from some of their classic film collections. We know y’all are a Dizney adult at heart <3 so be our guest at Majestic on September 23!

The Wrecks

Based on the latest local guidelines, attendees are no longer required to provide proof of negative COVID-19 test AND/OR vaccination for entry into this event. Other shows on our calendar may still have specific health and safety requirements based on artist request.  Be sure to check our venue website for the latest updates and guidelines as entry requirements are subject to change.


ABOUT THE WRECKS

Nick Anderson (Vocals)

Aaron Kelly (Bass)

Billy Nally (Drums)

Nick “Schmizz” Schmidt (Guitar)

Hailing from rural Wellsville, New York – almost exactly two hours south of nowhere, it’s not too surprising that there wasn’t much of a music scene. So, in the absence of one, Nick Anderson built one from scratch. In search of like-minded souls who loved the punk and alternative sounds he preferred, Nick turned to the internet. He recruited Aaron Kelley, Billy Nally, and Nick “Schmizz” Schmidt, to road test a new band: The Wrecks. The band’s top five tracks on Spotify have been listened to more than 80 million times, & their first single was a Top 40 Alternative Radio hit. Their most recent single, the post-breakup anthem “I Love This Part” finds the Wrecks’ music evolving as they approach the completion of their second album. Now as they progress towards an even larger reach that far extends above the foundation that they have already built, The Wrecks are poised for a wide-open road ahead of them.

Lissie – Carving Canyons Tour

Based on the latest local guidelines, attendees are no longer required to provide proof of negative COVID-19 test AND/OR vaccination for entry into this event. Other shows on our calendar may still have specific health and safety requirements based on artist request.  Be sure to check our venue website for the latest updates and guidelines as entry requirements are subject to change.


ABOUT LISSIE

Lissie’s Carving Canyons finds the acclaimed singer-songwriter digging deep to carry on through life’s many uncertainties. The singer-songwriter’s fifth album is her most personal expression yet, with twelve songs that chart the ripples caused by heartbreak and loneliness as well as what happens when the soul perseveres amidst pain. Carving Canyons is as deeply felt as Lissie’s music has ever been, with sumptuous production and indelible melodies that will surely stand the test of time.

Carving Canyons came about at Lissie’s own pace, following tour outings behind 2018’s Castles and the piano-based retrospective When I’m Alone from 2019. “It wasn’t a time where I felt like I had a lot to say,” she recalls, “and each record typically comes from a shift in my life where I need to share things.” As the COVID-19 pandemic spread across the world, Lissie was also dealing with an impactful breakup on her Iowa farm. “It was such a heavy time—not just for me but for the world, of course—and I needed love, support, and connection,” she says. “Because there was so much isolation, it was an important period of time for me to explore some of my dark places and process it all.”

As Lissie took in the nature and observed the seasons changing around her and within her, the songs that would make up Carving Canyons started to flow from her. “Sometimes, as seeds begin to sprout, you have to thin them out so that the ones you keep have enough space to grow and thrive,” she sagely states while reflecting on this time. “It’s a metaphor for making space for what matters, a brutal, beautiful cycle that can also be very healing, and it all comes from surrender. Furthermore, with the right amount of time, so much can grow and change so quickly.  The garden was a helpful reminder to have hope for the future.”

Throughout the early days of the pandemic and her breakup, Lissie was home more than if she’d been on tour. “I was able to deepen my friendships with women in my community,” she remembers, “and during the summer of 2020, I found myself with this incredible intergenerational female friend group. I think I pulled a lot of strength not only from their friendship but from observing the seasons and stages of their lives—where they’d been, what they’d overcome and where they were going. We lifted each other up.”

Lissie traveled to Nashville and co-wrote much of Carving Canyons with a majority of female-identifying songwriters—including Bre Kennedy, Madi Diaz, Morgan Nagler, Natalie Hemby, Kate York, and Sarah Buxton—who also contribute additional vocals throughout the album.  “It felt like we could pool our collective experience into sisterhood, self expression & support.” she says. “There was definitely a theme of relying on my network of women and gathering strength from knowing that they, too, had been through the ringer in some way, shape or form—and had come out the other side! And whether it be in a song or in the garden, we took our pain and turned it into purpose and beauty.”

Near the end of 2020, Lissie started studio work on Carving Canyons with producer and frequent collaborator Curt Schneider, kicking off a year-long recording process. “Curt was open to me writing and recording these batches of songs over the year as I was shifting perspectives,” Lissie says. “The record ended up following the process of grief, as well as addressing how things are always eventually going to change.”

Her independence within the context of the music industry—which she’s maintained since releasing 2016’s My Wild West on her Lionboy label—also enabled her to write straight from the heart, without feeling rushed by deadlines: “I really only write when I’m bursting at the seams, and it’s such a therapeutic thing to do. These songs become the listeners’ songs too, and hopefully it helps them deal with their emotions as well. It’s all universal.”

First single “Flowers” sounds expansive and wide-open, as Lissie sings about the process of grief and what it takes to push ahead. “The prettiest blooms literally come from shit, it’s a fertilizer,” she says while talking about the song’s lyrical themes. “I wanted to claim my right to feel my feelings. As I grieved—not only for a relationship, but for the world in the midst of a pandemic—I felt like my anger made people uncomfortable, but I came out the other side empowered and ready to step back into my light. I can grow my own flowers and make my own joy.”

The Diaz co-write “Sad” came about after Lissie was drawing from anger surrounding her relationship’s dissolution, and finding out that her songwriting partner had similar feelings she was able to tap into. “There’s hints of compassion, too,” she explains. “We wanted to draw that feeling of a person hurting you and never having to answer for doing that. You feel like you want to punish them.” Meanwhile, the glowing benevolence of “Chasing the Sun” was inspired by the early sunsets of Iowa winter: “I was driving and I felt like I was almost keeping pace with the sun. It’s about keeping your eyes on the horizon and having that hope for the future—looking for a bright spot to keep you going.”

“Night Moves” conjures the lush, nocturnal pop of Fleetwood Mac as well as Jenny Lewis’ recent work, while the gently stomping “Unlock the Chains” zooms in on, in Lissie’s words, “Having to understand what I want out of life, as well as who I want to be.” Carving Canyons’ winding, expansive title track explores the ways in which our own emotional experiences are forming new topographical textures to explore and reflect on: “There is beauty in pain,” Lissie says while talking about the song’s thematic focus. “It’s a part of life and our life story. What we go through creates the landscape of which to view a lifetime. If I’d never broken myself open, there’d be nothing to see.”

Then there’s “Lonesome Wine,” which finds Lissie examining her own relationship with alcohol in one of the most plaintively beautiful melodies she’s sung in her career to date. “For a lot of years I coped with things that didn’t feel good by opening up a bottle of wine,” she ruminates while discussing the song’s thematic bent. “But I realized that what I’m looking for isn’t in this bottle.”

Overall, Carving Canyons is about looking within while dealing with the uncertainty of the future—finding hope in personal and worldly adversity, no matter what the forecast might say.  “Some days it was so terrifying that I didn’t know how to carry on—and then I realized, ‘How exciting. What a gift,’” Lissie recalls while discussing her frame of mind while making the record. “The road in front of me is wide open.” Accordingly, Carving Canyons is another step in an impressive career that opens up endless possibilities for what’s to come.

Chris Gethard: A Father and the Sun

Based on the latest local guidelines, attendees are no longer required to provide proof of negative COVID-19 test AND/OR vaccination for entry into this event. Other shows on our calendar may still have specific health and safety requirements based on artist request. Be sure to check our venue website for the latest updates and guidelines as entry requirements are subject to change.


ABOUT CHRIS GETHARD

“One of our great cultural commentators on comedy/tragedy juxtapositions.” – NPR

New Jersey based Chris Gethard is a stand-up comedian, author and the host of the popular podcast, Beautiful/Anonymous.   He is known for his 2018 HBO special, CAREER SUICIDE produced Judd Apatow, and TruTV’s THE CHRIS GETHARD SHOW, which was an interactive, off-the-rails talk show that stretched the limits of what is possible on late-night television.   Just a few years ago, Chris drew acclaim in his starring role opposite Mike Birbiglia, in the indie hit, DON’T THINK TWICE. Chris currently recurs on SPACEFORCE for Netflix and has been recognized for his appearances on THE OFFICE, PARKS & REC, and NPR’s THIS AMERICAN LIFE.

Beautiful Anonymous Podcast

Chris tweets out a phone number. Thousands of people try to call. He talks to one of them for an hour. They never tell him their name. He is not allowed to hang up. That’s it. It’s a simple idea, but it’s turned into a thing that a whole lot of people love. Sometimes it’s funny. Often it’s dark. It’s a joy every time and a constant reminder that every single person has a story, and that we don’t often enough slow down to hear them.

Asher Roth

Based on the latest local guidelines, attendees are no longer required to provide proof of negative COVID-19 test AND/OR vaccination for entry into this event. Other shows on our calendar may still have specific health and safety requirements based on artist request. Be sure to check our venue website for the latest updates and guidelines as entry requirements are subject to change.


ABOUT ASHER ROTH

Nearly 15 years ago, Asher demonstrated his skill for rapping. The Morrisville, Pennsylvania native blended advanced flows with far-reaching references that spanned a love of pop culture, sports, and comedy. After posting songs online while studying at West Chester University, Asher relocated to Atlanta. There, he partnered with DJ Drama and Don Cannon for 2008’s The Greenhouse Effect. The self-released mixtape propelled Asher to recognition in the Hip-Hop community as a skillful MC with a unique style. “It meant so much to so many people and for me too, as far as this carefreeness,” he says. Roth signed to a major, released a double-platinum single, and a gold debut, 2009’s Asleep In The Bread Aisle. While “I Love College” remains a hallmark of the times, the song became a caricature for an artist pursuing an evergreen career. “When you’re first coming in, you just want everybody to like you. The harsh reality is that’s not gonna happen,” Asher says of some industry pushback and creative tug of war. “I realized it was never gonna be about my music.”

Despite that realization, throughout the last decade, Asher Roth made his music speak the loudest. 2010’s Seared Foie Gras with Quince and Cranberry mixtape made this priority clear, thumbing a nose at knee-jerk perceptions. While cultivating a core fanbase, projects with Travis Barker, Nottz, Blended Babies, and 2014’s Greenhouse Effect sequel earned acclaim. That stride carried into solo albums, Retrohash and Flowers On The Weekend. Friends like Buddy, Lil Yachty, Joyce Wrice, and others joined the party. Asher considers the 2020 DIY LP produced by Rob Devious “a benchmark for me as far as the maturation process and affirmation that I’m going the right way. I was aiming to write genuine songs.” That album arrived during a season when Asher returned to Philly after stints in LA and New York. As chronicled on “Mommydog,” the son, brother, and uncle was now comfortably near to his family and closest friends.

Since laying down roots, Asher helped create and enrich a sustainable gathering space and venue, Sunflower Philly. That desire to plant seeds is also reflected in the art. In January 2021, Asher tweeted an invitation to participate in Greenhouse Effect 3. When much of the world was isolated, Roth connected creators. Over 20 weeks on Twitch and Discord, Asher mentored and developed artists. Twelve producers span 15 tracks, with MCs from St. Louis, Boston, Buffalo, and the Bronx (care of fellow 2009 XXL Freshman alum Mickey Factz). The project gave birth to 2022’s offering “Why’s It So Grey Out?” produced by Salt Lake City’s Heather Grey, whom Asher connected with through his Discord and Greenhouse Effect Vol. 3 project. Asher continues to host artist development and collaboration projects with the latest installment dubbed “Summer School”. Visit sunflowerphilly.org and join the Discord at discord.gg/retrohash to learn more about what Asher’s been up to.

glaive

Based on the latest local guidelines, attendees are no longer required to provide proof of negative COVID-19 test AND/OR vaccination for entry into this event. Other shows on our calendar may still have specific health and safety requirements based on artist request.  Be sure to check our venue website for the latest updates and guidelines as entry requirements are subject to change. 


ABOUT GLAIVE

glaive is a vocalist, songwriter and producer from the mountains of North Carolina who began making music at the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, releasing his first song on Soundcloud in April 2020. His rise since has been meteoric, supported by a steady stream of new music that has quickly earned him acclaim and a devoted following. He shared his debut EP cypress grove in 2020, with The FADER and The New York Times naming the single “astrid” one of the best songs of the year. 2021 saw him play his first ever live shows, and his project all dogs go to heaven earned him spots on year-end Best Of lists from the The New York Times (critic Jon Caramanica’s favorite song of the year), Los Angeles Times, The FADER and more.

Jen Fulwiler

Based on the latest local guidelines, attendees are no longer required to provide proof of negative COVID-19 test AND/OR vaccination for entry into this event. Other shows on our calendar may still have specific health and safety requirements based on artist request.  Be sure to check our venue website for the latest updates and guidelines as entry requirements are subject to change. 


ABOUT JEN FULWILER

Jen Fulwiler is a standup comic, bestselling author, and mom of six. She was the host of the daily talk radio show The Jen Fulwiler Show on the national SiriusXM network, and when she launched her own podcast, This Is Jen, it debuted in the iTunes Comedy Top 10. She has been featured on the Today Show and CNN, and her viral social media sketches have racked up millions of views. Her standup comedy special, The Naughty Corner, is out now on Amazon.

Animal Collective

The Animal Collective show previously scheduled for June 4 has a new date of July 24. All tickets previously purchased will remain valid for the new date. For any further ticket inquiries please reach out to point of purchase.

Based on the latest local guidelines, attendees are no longer required to provide proof of negative COVID-19 test AND/OR vaccination for entry into this event. Other shows on our calendar may still have specific health and safety requirements based on artist request.  Be sure to check our venue website for the latest updates and guidelines as entry requirements are subject to change.


ABOUT ANIMAL COLLECTIVE

At the beginning there were two of them — Avey Tare and Panda Bear — banging drums and tweaking synths in their bedrooms, singing strange and sometimes heartbreaking songs about imaginary friends and childhood pets. Carried along by washes of squalling feedback, the music was noisy, and it was weird, but it was, at heart, pop music. This was the start of Animal Collective. For fifteen years Dave Porter (Tare), Noah Lennox (Bear), Brian “Geologist” Weitz and Josh “Deakin” Dibb have been rewriting the musical map, their line-up and aesthetic shifting with each astonishing release as they continue their pursuit of a new psychedelia. Their wild path has taken them from cramped concrete basement shows and forest floor singalongs to immersive installations at the Guggenheim and performances to millions on national television. So where now from here?”Caveman circles,” says Lennox, discussing the vision for their eleventh full-length album, Painting With; “Caveman circles, the first Ramones record, early Beatles and electronically produced. I think that was kind of our starting point.” Dizzyingly upbeat and gloriously realised, their latest LP bounces and pops with an urgent, ecstatic energy, propelled by polyrhythmic beats and gurgling modular synth, with Lennox and Portner’s vocals gleefully falling in and out of syncopation and off-kilter harmony. The songs are as experimental and deeply textured as anything that has come before but sound as sharp and snappy as chart hits, finding the band at both their most minimal and most ambitious: “The idea with cavemen was about being more primitive — the way we sounded when we were first playing together in New York” says Portner. “I feel like what we were doing with the last record [2012’s Centipede Hz] was something a little more complicated. This time we wanted to strip it down and simplify it, like techno and punk… And then put the Animal Collective filter on it all.”Working as a trio, Portner, Lennox and Weitz began trading demos in early 2015, pursuing a goal of what Portner calls “really short pop songs: no B.S, get in, get out material…” The three met up in Ashville during that Spring and began exploring the songs together. “I feel like lyrically there’s some really tough stuff” says Lennox, “but the intention was for the songs to have the spirit of trying to work things out. To make things better.” The group made a conscious decision not to tour the songs first in an attempt to keep them fresh, something Weitz found to be “a freeing process. That shift in perspective contributed to how much space is on the record.”Recording took place in the legendary EastWest Studios in Hollywood, home to sessions by The Beach Boys and Marvin Gaye. Making the space feel like home was essential: they lit candles on lily pads and projected a two-hour reel of dinosaur movies — spliced together by Dave’s sister Abby — on a constant loop. A baby pool was set up to help add to the vibe of the room, but the group soon discovered it sounded amazing when thudded and treated with effects. “Everything sounded good in that room” says Weitz.You can hear it. Everything about Painting With feels crisp and direct as though delivered in super high-definition Technicolor; the pitter-pattering handclaps of Lying In The Grass, the delirious arcade-hall rave of Burglars, the galloping bass and piano of the radiant On Delay — even Bea Arthur’s introduction to Golden Gal seems to shimmer. The interplay between Avey Tare and Panda Bear’s vocals (recorded while sat on high pedestals to lend the singing an “airy” quality) is brought front and centre with an uncharacteristic clarity: “With the vocals, it’s not like a typical call and response or harmony.” says Lennox, “It’s like two voices become one. Without one singer it doesn’t really work the same way. They dance with each other.” Portner interrupts: “Both vocals are meant to complete one thought.” The band put much of this down to their close collaboration with engineer Sonny Diperri: “He played a big part in how the vocals sounded. We didn’t put a lot of effects on the voices like in the past… We tried to be really careful about reverb, to not make everything washed out. When there is echo on the album almost everything is acoustic reverb. It attests to the greatness of those old studios — it’s cool you can record in your apartment, plenty of great music has been recorded that way, but there is something to say about the time that went into crafting these rooms. It feels like a lost art form.”In their search for more organic sounds, the trio challenged themselves to incorporate elements they usually find off-putting, either structurally or sonically “I remember specifically we brought up saxophone and brass instruments” recalls Portner. They enlisted the services of multireedist Colin Stetson — whose resumé includes collaborations with Arcade Fire, Godspeed You Black Emperor, Bon Iver and Tom Waits — to appear on the album’s rapturous, swirling opener, FloriDaDa, an ode to breaking boundaries and not seeing any separation in people or places: “We were huge fans of Colin’s and the sound that he has is super unique. We don’t notate a score for somebody, so it was cool to have him come in and lay down a bunch of ideas while the song was playing.” After discovering John Cale was a fan of their music, the group invited him down to the studio to record drones for Hocus Pocus — a slow-burning collage of stroboscopic vocals and bleeping, squelching modular synth that gives way to delirious release. Discovering the song wasn’t in a key the viola could be tuned for came as “a happy surprise” as they found themselves working with Cale’s material in new and exciting ways, his bowed tones and electronic manipulations forming a hypnotic transition into the beautifully sun-warped Vertical.

It’s just that that kind openness to playing with expectation and experimenting with form that lies at the heart of this personal and human album. “When we were doing (2007’s) Strawberry Jam, I thought it would be cool to literally rename ourselves The Painters.” recalls Portner, “Everyone kind of rolled their eyes at that one. But Noah brought the idea back [this time]. We talked about painting — cubism, Dada, these distorted ways of looking at things…” It’s all there in Painting With: the sound of artists finding vivid new ways to shape their ideas and challenge their own conventions, creating music that is at once startlingly fresh and still recognisably, uniquely Animal Collective.

The Black Angels

Based on the latest local guidelines, attendees are no longer required to provide proof of negative COVID-19 test AND/OR vaccination for entry into this event. Other shows on our calendar may still have specific health and safety requirements based on artist request.  Be sure to check our venue website for the latest updates and guidelines as entry requirements are subject to change.


ABOUT THE BLACK ANGELS

The best music reflects a wide-screen view of the world back at us, helping distill the universal into something far more personal. Since forming in Austin in 2004, The Black Angels have become standard-bearers for modern psych-rock that does exactly that, which is one of many reasons why the group’s new album, Wilderness of Mirrors, feels so aptly named.

Says vocalist/bassist Alex Maas, “a big focal point of this record is just the overall insanity that’s happening. What’s true? What’s not?” Adds guitarist Christian Bland, “We leave our music open to interpretation, but our topics are always universal themes – problems mankind has had since the beginning of time. You can relate them to any period.”

Indeed, in the five years since the release of the band’s prior album, Death Song, and the two-plus years spent working on Wilderness of Mirrors, pandemics, political tumult and the ongoing devastation of the environment have provided ample fodder for the Black Angels’ signature sonic approach. If the group’s members were terrified as they honed new music heading into an election year, they realized they didn’t even know how scary things could still get.

So, they looked inward, focusing on both their ongoing creative and musical development as well as their own struggles amid the external chaos. Wilderness of Mirrors hits even closer to home, as the group recorded solely in the friendly confines of Austin for the first time in more than a decade and entrusted co-production duties to its longtime front-of-house engineer, Brett Orrison.

“It was a really great experience, because Brett understands us a lot on a musical level. We’ve grown together,” Maas says. “We worked on this record for over a year in the studio in Austin. I don’t know any other situation where we’d have been able to do that in a 9-to-5 way.” Adds Bland, “Doing it in Austin allowed for open creativity and took away the stress of rushing to get something done. We used our time wisely.”

That methodical modus operandi can be heard throughout Wilderness of Mirrors, which expertly refines the Black Angels’ psychedelic rock attack alongside a host of intriguing sounds and textures. “History of the Future” and opener “Without a Trace” are classic blasts of fuzzed-out guitars that simultaneously perk up the ears and jumpstart the mind (“Is it still possible to be invincible when everyone else is expendable?” Maas wonders aloud on the latter), while a fast, thumping bass line and an allusion to a world leader hiding in his bunker propel “Empires Falling” into an ominous decree: “Every time you wake, I want to end you.”

“I came in with a riff that was kind of slow and mid-tempo-y,” Bland says of the song. “When I showed it to the band, [drummer] Stephanie [Bailey] started playing a quicker beat over it, [guitarist] Jake [Garcia] added this cool mercurial lead guitar line, and [multi-instrumentalist] Ramiro [Verdooren] laid down a heavy driving bass, and all the sudden it had some rock’n’roll gasoline behind it. That’s the beauty of being with these folks. Everybody brings their creativity to the table and a song could become something you never had envisioned before.”

Elsewhere, The Black Angels revel in newfound experiments like the melancholy, acoustic guitar-driven “100 Flowers of Paracusia” and “Here and Now,” two highlights of the album’s back half. “We would have never put songs like that on records before, just because we weren’t in that world,” Maas says. “I’m proud that we pushed ourselves.” There’s also the ‘60s French pop homage “Firefly,’ which features the sultry intonations of Thievery Corporation’s LouLou Ghelichkhani. “We don’t ever really bring people in to sing, but I thought it would be cool to have someone singing in French here – a back and forth, playful thing,” Maas says of “Firefly.” “It made the harmony more complete.”

Mellotron, strings and other keyboards are more prominent on Wilderness of Mirrors than ever before, and the album also benefits from the versatile contributions of new multi-instrumentalist Ramiro Verdooren, formerly of Austin band the Rotten Mangos. “Having that fresh perspective of a young person who’s a fucking incredible musician, it was a whole different ingredient,” enthuses Maas, who says Verdooren would often take in-progress songs home with him at night to experiment with tape loops and other accoutrements. Adds Bland, “If you think of something you want to add, Jake or Ramiro can do it immediately on whatever instrument.”

Another new addition to the team this time around was longtime Dinosaur Jr engineer John Agnello, who stepped in to mix Wilderness of Mirrors when The Black Angels were in need of a fresh set of ears. “When you self-produce your own record and do every single tiny little move yourself, you lose perspective,” Maas says. Adds Bland, “John’s outside perspective on it is what made the album shine. It became 3-D.”

But for all the experimentation, The Black Angels remain masterfully true to psych-rock forebears such as Syd Barrett, Roky Erickson, Arthur Lee and the members of the Velvet Underground, all of whom are namechecked on “The River.” The legacy of those artists is also at the core of the group’s beloved, long-running Levitation Festival, the veritable ground zero for the genre’s past, present and future. Says Bland, “Sitting down and channeling these spirits is something I’ve always wanted to do. It’s a little cryptic and spooky, almost like reincarnation. The river of knowledge keeps flowing, no matter what.

“The Velvet Underground song ‘I’ll Be Your Mirror’ – that’s what every Black Angels album has been about,” he continues. “You can’t work out your struggles unless you bring them to the forefront and think about them. If we can all think about them, maybe we can help save ourselves.”

Powered by Rockhouse Partners, an Etix company.