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Pelican Announce New Single Midnight and Mescaline out in April; Touring in June

Pelican (photo by Marfa Capodanno)

One night, more than several years ago, I saw Pelican and Scissorfight on the ‘Champions of Sound’ tour put together by Hydra Head in Manhattan at the old Knitting Factory. They played in the mid-level room — there were three; top, middle and basement — and with the ceiling overhead and the stage kind of tucked into the corner of that dark space, it was the moment where the band really clicked for me. I’d dug Australasia well enough, but seeing the power and presence they brought to the material live was another thing entirely, and while I’d have called myself a fan before, ever since I’ve measured that in a different way.

I’ve seen Pelican a few times since then, of course, and they’ve broadened their sound immensely since that landmark — though it’s been a minute, their most recent offering was 2013’s Forever Becoming (review here), newly remixed and remastered — but as they get ready to release the new 7″ Midnight and Mescaline, I think about the split 7″ I was so happy to pick up at that show and I have to give a little smile thinking someone might have a similar experience at their run of dates this June. Though the room will probably be bigger.

From the PR wire:

pelican midnight and mescaline

PELICAN To Release Midnight And Mescaline 7″, Band’s First New Music In Six Years, As Record Store Day Exclusive; June Tour With Cloakroom Booked + Remixed & Remastered Version Of Forever Becoming LP Out Now

PELICAN, the instrumental quartet whose singular vision of heavy music eschews classification, is set to release their first new music in six years via a two-song 7″ on Southern Lord coming as an indie exclusive on Record Store Day (April 13th, 2019 #RSD2019). The band’s penchant for commanding live performances will be apparent when they head out for a run of US tour dates this June, accompanied by Midwestern masters of thunderous slowgaze Cloakroom.

Channeling the visceral intensity of their live shows, PELICAN’s “Midnight And Mescaline” is an unrelenting riff marathon, careening from eviscerating heaviness to metal-infused fretboard frenetics to cathartic melody in a compact five-minute sprint. Paired with B-side “Darkness On The Stairs,” the new release taps into the band member’s shared roots in the late ’90s DIY music scene, reinvigorating the quartet with impassioned punk ferocity.

In conjunction with the 7″ and tour announce, Southern Lord has just digitally released a deluxe reissue of the quartet’s 2013 album Forever Becoming, featuring vastly improved mix and mastering of the original songs replete with a revised version of the previously Japan-only bonus track “Bardo.” Initially recorded by Chris Common under optimal conditions at Chicago’s Electrical Audio, Forever Becoming was mixed in less-than-ideal circumstances at a makeshift studio in Los Angeles, yielding mixes that varnished the incredible tones generated during tracking. When the subject of a vinyl repress came up, Common, now helming his own proper studio, asked for another crack at mixing the album. The result brings a new level of low-end depth, atmospheric clarity, and tight, punchy heaviness to the album. Vinyl pre-orders are coming soon and is available from all digital retailers and streaming services now.

Across almost twenty years, five full-lengths, seven EPs, and hundreds of live shows, PELICAN has cultivated a chemistry that borders on telepathy, catapulting the band from basement shows in their native Chicago to outlier appearances at international music festivals including Primavera, Roskilde, Pitchfork, Bonnaroo, Roadburn, and Maryland Deathfest, and headlining tours across four continents.

Watch for additional tour dates and music announcements from PELICAN to be posted shortly.

PELICAN w/ Cloakroom:
6/20/2019 Loving Touch – Ferndale, MI w/ Greet Death
6/21/2019 Lee’s Palace – Toronto, ON
6/22/2019 Bar de Ritz – Montreal, QC
6/23/2019 Great Scott – Boston, MA
6/24/2019 Brooklyn Bazaar – Brooklyn, NY w/ Planning For Burial
6/25/2019 Boot & Saddle – Philadelphia, PA w/ Planning For Burial
6/26/2019 Ottobar – Baltimore, MD
6/27/2019 Club Café – Pittsburgh, PA
6/28/2019 Northside Yacht Club – Cincinnati, OH
6/29/2019 Metro – Chicago, IL w/ Young Widows

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Pelican, “Deny the Absolute (2019 Version)” official video

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