Sleigh Bells – comprised of producer/guitarist Derek Miller and singer Alexis Krauss – have announced their sixth album, Texis, set for release on September 10th 2021, via Lucky Number.
The first single from the record, “Locust Laced“, is a classic slice of Sleigh Bells’ signature-controlled chaos. A video for the song, directed by Miller and Kills Birds’ Nina Ljeti, features Krauss as a classic country starlet come undone, a perfect complement to the song’s one-two punch of raucous guitar lines and Krauss’s high-octane, anthemic, shout-along chorus.
Listen to “Locust Laced” and watch the video for it below:
Their new album, Texis, is the sound of the duo letting go of hang-ups and inhibitions and allowing themselves to embrace the sort of loud, colorful, genre-melting music only they could make. “We stopped worrying about whether or not we’re in or out of our comfort zone, or if we were being repetitive or formulaic,” says Derek Miller. After pushing themselves to sound less obviously “Sleigh Bells” on their 2017 EP Kid Kruschev, he found he’d started to reject a lot of his best creative impulses. On Texis, the duo decided to simply push the first domino and see what would happen, chasing down whatever excitement and inspiration followed.
One of the band’s goals in writing Texis was to infuse even the most abrasive and full-blast songs with something that made the music feel “nourishing” to them. “The thing I’m most attracted to is the juxtaposition of happy and sad, melancholy and hope,” says Miller. “A lot of this is about trying to hold on to a shred of optimism through sheer force of will, and I hope this music can give people some joyful energy and confidence.”
Texis artwork & tracklist:
1. SWEET75
2. An Acre Lost
3. I’m Not Down
4. Locust Laced
5. Knowing
6. Justine Go Genesis
7. Tennessee Tips
8. Rosary
9. Red Flag Flies
10. True Seekers
11. Hummingbird Bomb
Sleigh Bells will be touring North America in Autumn and Winter in support of Texis; Kills Birds will be opening on the Autumn dates. UK and EU dates to be scheduled for 2022. All tour dates are below.
2021
10/5 – Raleigh, NC – Lincoln Theatre
10/6 – Richmond, VA – The Broadberry
10/8 – Nashville, TN – Mercy Lounge
10/9 – Charlotte, NC – The Underground
10/10 – Atlanta, GA – Center Stage Theater
10/12 – Houston, TX – Warehouse Live
10/13 – Austin, TX – Mohawk
10/15 – Dallas, TX – Granada Theater
10/17 – Denver, CO – Gothic Theatre
10/18 – Salt Lake City, UT – Metro Music Hall
10/20 – Phoenix, AZ – Crescent Ballroom
10/21 – Los Angeles, CA – Teragram Ballroom
10/23 – Oakland, CA – The New Parish
10/26 – Portland, OR – Wonder Ballroom
10/27 – Vancouver, BC – Venue Nightclub
10/28 – Seattle, WA – The Showbox
2022
2/8 – Columbus, OH – Newport Music Hall
2/9 – Cincinnati, OH – The Ballroom at Taft Theatre
2/11 – St. Louis, MO – Red Flag
2/12 – Kansas City, MO – The Truman
2/13 – Omaha, NE – Slowdown
2/15 – Milwaukee, WI – Turner Hall Ballroom
2/16 – Minneapolis, MN – Fine Line
2/18 – Chicago, IL – Metro
2/19 – Detroit, MI – The Magic Stick
2/21 – Toronto, ON – The Axis Club
2/23 – Washington, DC – 9:30 Club
2/24 – Boston, MA – Paradise Rock Club
2/25 – Brooklyn, NY – Brooklyn Steel
2/27 – Philadelphia, PA – Theatre of Living Arts