There weren’t a whole lot of reasons to get excited for 2023, but late last year Bass Drum of Death gave us a noisy pair just before the holidays hit. First came word of Say I Won’t, the Mississippi garage rock band’s new album that hit in January via Fat Possum, soon aired out by an extensive North American tour that finally pulls into town tonight (April 3) with a show at Brighton Music Hall in Allston.
We first got jazzed on new Bass Drum of Death record via a cruising new ’70s-minded, riff-fueled single called “Head Change.” Watch the video below. “We kind of wanted a mid-tempo psych stomper, and really didn’t change a whole lot from the demo,” says bandleader John Barrett. “We added the dueling guitar bridge in the studio spur of the moment, and it ended up being one of my favorite parts on the whole record.”
Recorded with The Black Keys’ Patrick Carney at Audio Eagle Studios in Nashville, Say I Won’t is billed as the first Bass Drum of Death album written, demoed, and recorded with not just Barrett, but his touring band, opening up a newfound collaboration in the songwriting and presenting a rock and roll record in its rawest form. “My first two records were made entirely by me alone with my gear, my laptop, and a Snowball USB mic,” he adds. “They were just made quickly, cheaply, as an excuse to tour. I wanted to take my time with this record. Make something good that I was proud of in itself.”
It should sound pretty huge tonight in Allston.
BASS DRUM OF DEATH + DEAD TOOTH :: Monday, April 3 at Brighton Music Hall, 158 Brighton Ave. in Allston, MA :: 7 p.m., 18-plus, $20 :: Event page :: Advance tickets
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