Yot Club Announces Second Studio Album 'Rufus'
The new album is to be released March 29th.
By: Michael Major Jan. 31, 2024
Yot Club, the indie-pop brainchild of Brooklyn-based Ryan Kaiser, announces his second studio album, Rufus, to be released March 29th via Amuse. He also shares the first single off of the album, “Pixel,” with an accompanying music video. Pre-order "Rufus" HERE.
“Pixel,” a moody, retro-futuristic track with a sense of urgency, gives listeners a first taste of what they can expect from Rufus. A fast-tempo drum beat complimented by a cascading guitar hook serve as the background of Kaiser's slightly distorted voice musing, “I see the world in such a way that was not meant for any man, no.”
The accompanying music video, directed by Ben Turok, is a mix of vignettes of Kaiser and friends on a night in New York City, each on their own journey. The film-quality video plays on feelings of nostalgia and serves as the perfect visual compliment to the track's lo-fi sound.
“This song is about getting caught up in your own life and technology in relation to self-importance and how you see yourself,” explains Kaiser. “It's never been harder to appreciate your own circumstances than it is today because you can play the comparison game. It's a complicated dynamic: the people whose lives look the best can often suck, 'cos why else would they go to such efforts to make it look like their lives are great!”
Rufus, the follow-up to his 2023 collaborative singles with spill tab and Jordana, allows listeners a deeper, more vulnerable look into the inner workings of Yot Club's thoughts. The 13-track album explores themes of juxtaposition, introspection, and nostalgia through Kaiser's signature lo-fi sound and relatable storytelling.
Rufus includes co-writes with the likes of Tommy English (Carly Rae Jepsen, Kacey Musgraves), Brooklyn-based artist and songwriter Harrison Lipton, and singer Charli Adams, with Patrick Wimberly (Lil Yachty, Joji, Blood Orange, MGMT) on mixing duties, and the result is a collection of songs that sounds bolder and brighter.
From the shimmering surf-pop of opener “Stuntman,” to the minor chord angst and quiet-loud-quiet pulse of “New Day,” to The Strokesian swoon of album closer “Lazy Eyes,” Kaiser lo-fi hooks have a new cinematic scope.
Rufus is not exactly Ryan Kaiser, but these snapshots capture the essence of his experiences: a bad relationship and fresh realizations; leaving it all behind to try and find footing in a shiny new city that maybe isn't exactly the imagined, mythologized creative utopia. It continues Kaiser's coming of age — looking back, picking it all apart, trying to work it all out, and constantly pushing forward.
Since adopting the Yot Club moniker in 2019, Kaiser has released countless singles (including platinum-certified “YKWIM?”) and EPs, earning him over one billion global streams and praise from outlets such as Rolling Stone, Earmilk, American Songwriter, and more. The Mississippi-raised artist released his debut album off the record in 2022, followed by a sold-out headlining tour across the United States. Kaiser is set to perform at Kilby Court Block Party in Salt Lake City in May.
About Yot Club
26-year-old Ryan Kaiser moved from Nashville to Brooklyn, at the tail-end of 2022 and quickly made a name for himself creating daydreamy, sun-blasted, Polaroid-pop as Yot Club. Rewind to 2019 when, fresh out of college and out of nowhere, Kaiser's song “YKWIM?” became a go-to sad song for nostalgia-centric TikToks. (It's now 2x RIAA Platinum, contributing to Kaiser's more than 1 billion global streams.)
Accordingly the major labels came calling, but the Mississippi-native stayed grounded, prolific, and singular in his vision, releasing his self-produced bedroom pop EPs and loosies, before signing to Amuse, dropping his debut LP off the grid in 2022, and performing extensively in the States and Europe.
With Yot Club's second full-length, Rufus, releasing this March Kaiser is expanding his sonic palette and challenging his own established modes by collaborating: writing with Tommy English (Carly Rae Jepsen, Kacey Musgraves), and singer Charli Adams, with Patrick Wimberly (formerly one-half of Chairlift) on mixing duties. His lo-fi hooks are bolder and brighter with a new cinematic scope.
Photo Credit: Ariel Fisher
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