[Press Release]
New Music From Deer Tick
DEER TICK DEBUT NEW SONG “THE DREAM’S IN THE DITCH”
SHARE ALBUM ART FOR NEGATIVITY, OUT 9/24
ANNOUNCE FALL HEADLINING TOUR DATES
LISTEN: “The Dream’s In The Ditch” official premiere via Rolling Stone
WATCH: “The Dream’s In The Ditch” live acoustic performance at
Newport Folk Fest via Esquire
LISTEN: John McCauley solo set at Newport Folk Fest via NPR
Deer Tick, known for years not only as the unofficial patron saints of Newport Folk Festival, but also revered for their infamous and special-guest filled afterparties, revealed the album artwork for Negativity in real-time this past Saturday. By hiring an airplane to fly over the scenic Newport festival grounds, the band was able to give fans in their home state of Rhode Island an early taste of the record’s cover art (below).
Negativity cover art Airplane flyover at Newport Folk (cr: James Joiner)
John McCauley and Deer Tick have long walked a tightwire between total despair and fractured resilience, butNegativity represents a heroic leap forward on virtually all fronts for the Providence, Rhode Island-based band. Recorded earlier this year in Portland, Oregon with legendary producer/musician Steve Berlin (The Blasters, Los Lobos, and last year’s McCauley side project, Diamond Rugs), the album – Deer Tick’s fifth full-length studio release, and follow-up to 2011’s acclaimed Divine Providence – is McCauley’s most personal work thus far as well as the band’s most undeniable and universal, their famously freewheeling musical approach refined here into a gloriously cohesive whole.
Negativity was penned over the course of a genuinely eventful 2012, an annus horribilus in which McCauley’s father pleaded guilty to federal charges of conspiracy and tax fraud, ultimately leading to a prison sentence. As if that weren’t enough, McCauley’s wedding engagement collapsed under the weight of his own excessive behavior and impossible lifestyle. Like any true artist, McCauley channeled his anger, sadness, and regret into his work, resulting in what can be safely declared his finest collection of songs to date, impassioned and interior and increasingly mature, both as expression of emotion as well as pure unadulterated songcraft.
Deer Tick – sounding as sure-footed as one would expect from a band known for spending a couple of hundred nights each year on stage – more than match the strength of the material by taking a more detailed approach than on some of the breakneck recordings of their past. From the sparkling baroque pop of “The Dream’s In The Ditch” to the full-blown Memphis showstopper, “Trash,” Negativity sees the Tick bridging boozy punk, AM gold, bar band blues, country soul, and whatever else catches their fancy into their own profoundly American rock ‘n’ roll. Additional sonic color comes courtesy of magnificently arranged brass accompaniment by Austin, Texas’s GRAMMY®-winning Latin fusion collective, Grupo Fantasma.
“I guess I’ll catch you on the other side,” McCauley sings in the album’s final moment, a promise that, despite the pain and fatalism and yes, negativity, he’s here for the long haul.
Tour Dates:
Sat-Sep-14 – Pawtucket, RI – Dudesmash II @ The Met
Sun-Sep-15 – Springfield, MA – The John Boyle O’Reilly Club
Tue-Sep-17 – York, PA – Strand-Capitol Performing Arts Center
Wed-Sep-18 – Baltimore, MD – Ottobar
Fri-Sep-20 – Morgantown, WV – 123 Pleasant Street
Sat-Sep-21 – Bristol, TN – Bristol Rhythm and Roots Festival
Thu-Sep-26 – Los Angeles, CA – UCLA – Bruin Plaza
Thu-Oct-10 – Toronto, ON – Lee’s Palace
Fri-Oct-11 – Detroit, MI – Magic Stick
Sat-Oct-12 – Dekalb, IL – Otto’s Nightclub
Sun-Oct-13 – Madison, WI – Majestic Theatre
Tue-Oct-15 – Minneapolis, MN – Fine Line Music Cafe
Wed-Oct-16 – Winnepeg, MB – West End Cultural Centre
Fri-Oct-18 – Edmonton, AB – The Starlite Room
Sat-Oct-19 – Calgary, AB – The Republik
Mon-Oct-21 – Vancouver, BC – Rickshaw Theatre
Tue-Oct-22 – Seattle, WA – Neumos
Wed-Oct-23 – Portland, OR – Wonder Ballroom
Fri-Oct-25 – San Francisco, CA – Slim’s
Sat-Oct-26 – Los Angeles, CA – The Troubadour
Sun-Oct-27 – Solana Beach, CA – Belly Up Tavern
Tue-Oct-29 – Salt Lake City, UT – Urban Lounge
Wed-Oct-30 – Denver, CO – Bluebird Theater
Fri-Nov-01 – Omaha, NE – Slowdown
Sat-Nov-02 – Lawrence, KS – The Bottleneck
Sun-Nov-03 – St Louis, MO – Firebird
Mon-Nov-04 – Louisville, KY – Headliners Music Hall
Wed-Nov-06 – Philadelphia, PA – Union Transfer
Thu-Nov-07 – New York, NY – Webster Hall