The post-punk band from Washington D.C., Bacchae (pronounced “Bock-Eye”), have shared a brand new single, “Just A Rat.” The single is going to be on their upcoming album, Next Time, set to release July 5, 2024, via Get Better Records. Next Time is the successor to the 2020 album, Pleasure Visions, that they considered to be released at the worst possible time. The new album, Next Time, was produced by J. Robbins.
Bacchae’s take on “Just A Rat”:
“Bacchae generally play punk music that’s emotional and self-reflective, but sometimes we get goofy with it…as demonstrated by the bass-thumping, dance-punk song, “Just A Rat.” What if you were just a rat, eating garbage in a nightclub dumpster? Sometimes it feels so good to live chaotically, like a rat.”
Bacchae have been making eclectic, yet hooky, punk music in DC since 2016. Their classic sound lies between gnarly dissonance, bittersweet choruses, and melodic earworms. It’s an excellent soundtrack for despairing about hte state of it all while channeling the anger to do something about it. Some of the highlights of their careers include landing on Stereogum’s Band to Watch List in 2020 and playing Turnstile’s Time and Space record release back in 2018.
This band has a little bit of everything to offer, whether you’re into proto-punk from the 70s or synth-pop from the 80s or hardcore from the 90s, you’ll find something to love. The new album is a lament and how almost every song on the album is about mourning or regretting something that has been lost; whether it be a work-life balance, a lover, a way of life, your motivation, your mental health, a sense of self or something else. Two of the main topics on this album are the displeasure of work and the disappointment of the daily grind are topics.
“Cooler Talk” and “Dead Man” describe the insanity-inducing reality of corporate labor and the misery of going to work. Meanwhile there are other songs like “Next Time”, “Drop Dead Gorgeous”, “Try” and “Wicked Fountain” that address the dissatisfaction and loneliness of living in a dystopian reality. We get a little goofy with our dance number, “Just a Rat”, and explore love and self-doubt with the spooky and atmospheric “Feeling the Same.” Musically, these songs draw from many punk, post-punk and eclectic influences.
Next Time Track List:
- Try
- Cooler Talk
- Next Time
- Just A Rat
- Drop Dead Gorgeous
- New Jersey
- Dead Man
- Feeling the Same
- Evening Drive
- Wicked Fountain
