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Death From Above 1979 Announce 'The Physical World'

Preview by: Lauren Sauer

You can stop holding your breath now.

Dance-punk golden boys Death From Above 1979 announced a second album on Tuesday, complete with track listings, international tour dates, and a tentative reunion. Best of all, they dropped a new single off The Physical World: ‘Trainwreck 1979’, ripe for the drooling over. 

Hey, it took them a decade, but they’re back—after the international tour following DFA 1979’s first album, You’re A Woman, I’m A Machine, the eccentric duo announced a split. Jesse F. Keeler, the band’s bassist, synthesist, and provider of backing vocals, posted the update to the group’s official forum, citing differences in musical style, creative goals, and personal reasons. This was August 2009. By February 2011, the two had reunited; cut to 2012-2013, and the band was already doing informal live shows with experimental material, in order to ‘share…and work out the kinks,’ according to lead vocalist and drummer Sebastien Granger.

Another two years later, and here we are—sitting pretty with their new single, a complete track listing for The Physical World, and a revamped sound. It’s still immediately recognizable as DFA, but the vibe they have going on is much more raw—stripped down and bass-drum heavy, a veritable electropunk powerhouse. Vocal innovations similar to the a capella opening of ‘Dead Womb’—the heavy breathing in the beginning of ‘Trainwreck’ comes immediately to mind—and Granger’s falsetto riffs are on point, lending the new track a rhythmically eerie undertone. While it’s not as ‘traditionally punk’ as older creations, ‘Trainwreck 1979’ and The Physical World show incredible potential, along with some well-earned artistic growth.

The Physical World, produced by Dave Sardy of RHCP fame, is due out 9 September 2014. DFA’s international tour kicks off a few days before, with two consecutive shows at Riot Fest Toronto (Sept. 6-7), before jetting over to Koln, Germany. The North American leg of the tour starts up again 31 October in New Orleans. Merch and album pre-orders? Right here. There’s even a vinyl, for all you aural purists out there.

           And now, the track listings for the September album:

01. Cheap Talk
02. Right On, Frankenstein!
03. Virgins
04. Always On
05. Crystal Ball
06. White Is Red
08. Nothin' Left
09. Government Trash
10. Gemini
11. The Physical World

All right, let’s all relax. Breathe. Do some yoga (?). Try not to bust a blood vessel. Check out their site, pre-order your damn vinyl, stalk the shows you can make, blast Trainwreck in your car with the windows down—whatever. Let’s just try to keep the joyous rioting in the streets to a minimum, though.

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