BLESSED Share New Single 'Redefine' From Forthcoming Album 'Circuitous'

Breaking avant-rock band Blessed has sharpened their strengths into a stunning sophomore full-length, 'Circuitous' - mixed by John Congleton (Swans, St. Vincent) & mastered by Greg Obis (Alabaster Deplume, Cloud Nothings). Blessed deliver everchanging depth and expansion to their craft - resulting in a sweeping, hyperreal, industrial art-rock tragedy.

Blessed have released their outstanding and intricate album opener "Redefine". It's the second single from their forthcoming album Circuitous - a rich, moving and committed piece of work that expands on the band's eclectic discography and confirms their mission to evolve on musicality, songwriting, performance and artistry.

Singer and guitarist Drew Riekman dives into the themes of "Redefine" - "The idea that we cannot disrupt the status quo only serves someone with power over us. It's easy to feel that you're never doing enough, that your mere existence in the face of crushing weights of the world isn't an act of triumph in itself. We're generally fed a narrative at this juncture that no one works hard enough, and your circumstances are your own fault exclusively. Being told that the only path forward is working 10 hour days, volunteering your labor to companies that make billions, and that you'll one day be rewarded is a farce."

In their comprehensive artwork for Circuitous, artists Nathan Donovan and Jacob Dutton are teasing out a visual universe through a series of stills, images, and video shorts. The newest dispatch from this project is the visual accompaniment for "Redefine", the second part in an animated diptych. A sister piece to the AI-inspired video for the album's lead single, "Anything", the short takes place in the same claustrophobic maze of corridors and doors, telling a different side of the story of the android protagonist.

Donovan and Dutton employ patience and minimalism to evoke mixed emotions in the viewer, who is observing the storyline as it slowly unfolds - now mediated through the perspective of security cameras and computers located in an eerie, nondescript office. The directors create brooding suspense through long, lingering shots that capture the monotony and banality of modern life. Given no hint to whether we see through the eyes of another - or a fly on the wall- the viewer is compelled to contemplate their own complicity in the story of the uncannily empathetic android.

Blessed has sharpened their strengths into their sophomore full-length Circuitous, bringing everchanging depth and expansion to their song craft. The result is a sweeping, hyperreal, industrial art-rock tragedy, rendered in walls of noise, controlled drums, meandering ambience, and staccato syncopation. Pulled from hours of jam material and hundreds of demos, Circuitous's eight tracks sprawl and thrash and burst and fall, sometimes for nearly eight minutes - lyrically speaking to agoraphobia, isolation, grief, the hyper-control of capital and the numbness it breeds.

Blessed recorded Circuitous during winter 2020-2021 at Vancouver's Rain City Recorders with Matt Roach and Emily Ryan. The record was mixed by John Congleton (Swans, St. Vincent, Wye Oak) and mastered by Greg Obis (Alabaster Deplume, Cloud Nothings). The group experimented with two different drum setups, eventually blending the two within a single song. The record builds on Blessed's commitment to creativity, introducing more synthesizers, programming, MIDI, sequencers, and experimentation in arrangements.

Since being established in 2015, Blessed has been on a relentless but precise creative trajectory, releasing three EPs, an LP, a 7" split, and a remix EP. Their most recent, 2021 EP, iii, earned positive acclaim from the likes of Iggy Pop, Talkhouse, Premier Guitar and Pitchfork. They've crafted a jaw-dropping live show experience and this fall hit the road with Stuck in support of Circuitous - see below for a full list of dates and grab tickets here.

Listen to the new single here:

BLESSED LIVE DATES

All Dates w/ Stuck

Nov 17th - Winnipeg, MB - The GoodWill

Nov 18th - Saskatoon, SK - The Black Cat

Nov 19th - Calgary, AB - Palomino

Nov 20th - Edmonton, AB - The Aviary

Nov 23rd - Vancouver, BC - The Red Gate

Nov 25th - Seattle, WA - Clock Out

Nov 26th - Portland, OR - High Water Mark

Nov 28th - Sacramento, CA - The Starlet Room

Nov 29th - San Francisco, CA - The Knockout

Nov 30th - Los Angeles, CA - Gold Diggers

Dec 1st - Long Beach, CA - Alex's Bar

Dec 4th - El Paso, TX - Mona

Dec 6th - Austin, TX - Hotel Vegas

Dec 7th - Denton, TX - Andy's Bar

Dec 8th - Fayetteville, AR - Smoke And Barrel

Dec 9th - St Louis, MO - Heavy Anchor

Dec 10th - Chicago, IL - Empty Bottle

Circuitous sees its release via Flemish Eye Records on October 28. To pre-order or save, go here.

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