Eric Hutchinson Releases a New Single, Announces Album & Tour

Do you remember what it was like to be 17 and see a world full of possibilities while simultaneously dealing with all of that teen angst? Eric Hutchinson does, and he dove headfirst into that subject for his upcoming album Class of '98. The opening track and first single off the new record, Rock Out Tonight, was released Wednesday via Billboard, and sets the scene with heavy guitars and a narrative that evokes the high-drama restlessness of a group of teenagers aimlessly driving around the suburbs in a Ford Taurus. Eric says the song, "is about wanting to be rebellious, but having no idea how to do so."

As if the nouveau-nineties jam wasn't enough, Eric is announcing an East-Coast tour starting in April. For a full list of all confirmed dates see below.

Watch The Teaser For Rock Out Tonight below!

Sometime last year, Eric Hutchinson came to a strange realization: he kept daydreaming about high-school. It had been over twenty years since the singer-songwriter had graduated from Montgomery Blair, yet his adolescent dreams, hopes, fears, anxieties and emotions the singer faced as a kid began flooding back; suddenly, the singer felt transported back into his teenage self. Growing up in suburban Maryland, Hutchinson's teenage years were filled with the type of alienation and private angst recognizable to most anyone who's ever been 17. Twenty-plus years later, the singer was finally ready to write about it. The result: Class of '98, a 90's alt-rock-inspired autobiographical record that chronicles the singer-songwriter's adolescence.

"It took me a long time to understand myself," Hutchinson says. "Writing this record allowed me to get into the time machine and go back and look around my old life and report from my current point of view. That was fun."

After experimenting with a series of genres like Americana/soul and jazz on his last few albums Modern Happiness and Before and After Life, the singer-songwriter turned to the pop-punk alt-rock of his youth for the riff-heavy Class of 98, taking inspiration from bands like Green Day, Oasis, and Weezer. "That music is in my guitar DNA," says the singer. "I love 90's music, and this type of sound was so formative for me." To help round out his sound, Hutchinson recruited Justin Sharbono (formerly of Soul Asylum) to offer his distinctive guitar playing on the album. Hutchinson also enlisted the sonic guidance and mixing talents of Paul Kolderie, who'd made great 90's records with bands like Radiohead, Hole, The Lemonheads, Buffalo Tom and The Pixies.

Taken as a whole, Class of 98 arrives as Hutchinson's most playful yet distinctive work, one that will surely resonate with longtime fans of the singer's pop-rock hits like "Rock & Roll", "Tell the World", and "Watching You Watch Him".

For Hutchinson, the experience of delving back into his high-school youth helped him learn a lot: about his upbringing, about parenthood, and about himself. "I like the 90's way better," he says, "when I'm not living in them."

See Eric Hutchinson Live:

2/11 Bellingham, WA @ Wild Buffalo

2/12 Seattle, WA @ Substation

2/13 Portland, OR @ Dante's

2/15 San Francisco, CA @ Slims

2/16 Novato, CA @ Hopmonk Tavern - Novato

2/18 San Diego, CA @ Belly Up

2/19 Los Angeles, CA @ Troub

2/20 San Juan Capistrano, CA @ Coach House

2/21 Scottsdale, AZ @ Top Golf

2/22 Las Vegas, NV @ Top Golf

4/23 Pittsburgh, PA @ Jergel's Rhythm Grille

4/24 Philadelphia, PA @ Underground Arts

4/25 Easton, MD @ Avalon Theatre

4/27 Boston, MA @ Sinclair

4/29 New York City, NY @ Gramercy Theatre

4/30 Ridgefield, CT @ Ridgefield Playhouse

5/1 Lancaster, PA @ Chameleon Club

5/2 Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club

5/3 Annapolis, MD @ Rams Head On Stage

5/7 Virginia Beach, VA @ Elevation 27

5/9 Atlanta, GA @ Vinyl @ Center Stage

5/10 Nashville, TN @ 3rd and Lindsley

Photo Credit: Shervin Lainez

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