Whenever the question about what I'm currently listening to pops up,
Ohmme is always a major part of the conversation. I've been seeing them perform live for years, whether it's been at the
Museum of Contemporary Art,
Thalia Hall,
House of Vans, Empty Bottle, or Reckless Records, and have been obsessed with their self titled EP. The band's core is made up of Macie Stewart and Sima Cunningham delivering a rush of experimental guitars and ethereal vocals (a little violin here and there, too), with Matt Carrol providing the percussion to their unique sound. The result is equal parts explosive and meditative, and easily some of the most interesting rock music coming out of our fair city.
The past few days, Stewart and Cunningham have been teasing future plans and today they delivered with the announcement of their debut album,
Parts, being release by Indiana label
Joyful Noise Recordings!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PnqxjahQwS0
To add excitement to the already fantastic announcement, Ohmme released the video for their lead single "Icon". Both the video and song has the band running into new territory, with the majority of "Icon" sounding much more pop oriented than their previous work. The video's look is colorful and welcoming, with symmetrical shots that draw you in. Carrol is heavily featured looking like he's having the time of his life as Stewart and Cunningham stoically deliver the song's lyrics looking right into the camera.
However, as the song bounces along, Ohmme's guitars find themselves drifting into their trademark atmospheric noise, engulfing you in their darkly tinted guitar buzz, before snapping back into the catchy melodies the song started with. "Icon" is the perfect introduction to Ohmme and their upcoming album.
Parts is set to release on August 24th from
Joyful Noise Recordings and will feature fellow Chicago talents like Doug McCombs, Ken Vandermark and cellist Tomeka Reid. They will also be playing an In the Round show at Thalia Hall on August 26.
Tickets are $12 and available now! You can pre-order the album now in a variety of formats (but honestly, look at that VIP colorway below and tell me that's not the obvious pick).
