Have Mercy Releases 'NUMB'

The wait is over for NUMB, the brand new album from rock band Have Mercy. Out now via Rude Records, NUMB marks the band's first full-length since 2019's The Love Life and features recent singles “Middle” and “Alive”. Fans can watch the new music video for “Numb” below.

Shares front man Brian Swindle: “The best music Have Mercy has written and released are the songs that happen organically. The songs that aren't forced or influenced by people outside of the group. This record was just us three guys writing music because we enjoy it. It's a challenge to write something cool.

Lyrically, the record had no choice but to be influenced by my sobriety, new marriage, and repairing / disconnecting from relationships with people. Over the last couple of years, there have been a lot of changes. We've all had to face demons and come to grips with what our realities are and how to sustain a healthier lifestyle.

We wrote and recorded the majority of this record in my basement. It's truly a homegrown record and to me it feels very reminiscent of our first record The Earth Pushed Back. It's a band again, a group effort. I'm really happy that we're all in each other's lives again.”

About the title track he adds: "'Numb' is a song about being completely emotionally drained. Trying every possible way to get your life together but never saying or doing the right things. I'm a person who is constantly tongue tied and getting lost in their own thoughts. Sometimes it feels like conveying my thoughts and feelings is more draining then therapeutic. The title kind of summed up the whole record.”

Have Mercy reunited last year and released new music for the first time since 2019, capturing the attention of Brooklyn Vegan, FLOOD Magazine, The Noise, and more. The self-titled EP features recent singles “Fast Car”, “SIO”, and “I'm Gonna Be Ok”, and is out now via ZODHIAC Records. Stream Have Mercy now here.

Following the EP, Have Mercy signed with international label Rude Records to release a CD re-pressing of their debut LP The Earth Pushed Back. They also shared a previously unreleased b-side from their 2012 EP, My Oldest Friend, titled “Seventeen”. Most recently the band covered Smashing Pumpkins' “1979” for Changing Tides, a compilation of acoustic covers benefitting Sea Shepherd as part of Rude Records' charitable arm Rude Cares.

About Have Mercy

Emerging from their hiatus in 2020, Baltimore's alt-rock sensation, Have Mercy, are back and better than ever. Their comeback album, NUMB, out now via Rude Records, marks a pivotal moment in their career. This album celebrates perseverance, sobriety, newfound love, and the pursuit of a healthier lifestyle, solidifying their place in the alt-rock pantheon.

After reevaluating their priorities, the band, consisting of Brian Swindle, Andrew Johnson, and Nick Woolford, began reconnecting as neighbors and friends. “There's a bond between us that's undeniable,” Brian Swindle says. “I think that's something you can't ever tear down at the core of it.” That connection has been evident throughout their journey, which began in Baltimore basements in 2012.

Over the years, they've released four full-length albums and five EP/split records. Their debut album, The Earth Pushed Back, garnered acclaim in 2013, leading to a deal with Hopeless Records. They produced memorable albums like A Place Of Their Own in 2014 and Make The Best Of It in 2017, working with producers Paul Leavitt and Brian McTernan. The Love Life was released in 2019, months ahead of their break. Their most recent offering, Self-Titled EP, was released in August 2022.

“I feel like the way that I explained it to most people is that the EP was kind of like a test run to see if we could do this because for years and years and years, we were like we want to do our own record. We want to do it all ourselves and stuff.” Andrew Johnson explains. And they were vindicated in their decision with their reformation hailed by titles such as Brooklyn Vegan, New Noise, Flood Magazine, The Alternative, and more.

As they embark on this revitalized chapter, NUMB finds Have Mercy rediscovering their passion with newfound wisdom. Free from self-imposed and industry expectations, they've created a heartfelt, honest, and liberated body of work.

Have Mercy regard NUMB as the best music the band has written. The self-produced record was mostly written and recorded in Brian Swindle's basement and allowed them to recapture the origins of the band.

Photo credit: Keeyahtay Lewis

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