PREMIERE: Peach Kelli Pop Conjure Dark Powers in “Black Magic” Video

The LA-via-Ottawa garage rock four-piece get spooky in the latest Gentle Leader preview.
PREMIERE: Peach Kelli Pop Conjure Dark Powers in “Black Magic” Video

The LA-via-Ottawa garage rock four-piece get spooky in the latest Gentle Leader preview.

Words: Mike LeSuer

May 17, 2018

With the release of their Which Witch EP in April, Allie Hanlon’s bubblegum punk project Peach Kelli Pop announced their return with their first record in three years. Following the trilogy of Hanlon-portraited LPs dating back to 2010 (titled Peach Kelli Pop, Peach Kelli Pop, and Peach Kelli Pop, respectively), the group is also set to release their fourth LP at the end of this month, which, by all accounts, promises to expand the project’s reach to incorporate a full band, rather than serving primarily as a solo outlet for the former White Wires drummer.

So far, it seems they’ve delivered—not just evidenced by the psychedelic multiverse of Gentle Leader’s cover art, but also by the plurality of energies dominating lead singles “Hello Kitty Knife” and “Black Cat 13.” True to revised form, “Black Magic,” the third sample from the forthcoming record, proves exactly the type of worm you can’t possibly extract from your ear, burrowing through its three-minute runtime with an unprecedented energy for the band. Blessed with a Lizzy Walker–directed video, the cursed cut comes to life as grainy ’70s horror footage depicting witchcraft, seances, a bleeding telephone, and a cameo by the professionally uncomfortable Matt Ingebretson.

On the symbolic value of the track, Hanlon says:

“‘Black Magic’ is about not being strong enough to leave a relationship where you are being disrespected. It’s about small day-to-day moments in a relationship that make you realize it should end, and the feelings of disappointment involved.”

Gentle Leader is out May 25 on Mint Records. Check out the video and the band’s expansive tour dates below:

Tour Dates:

05.25.18 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Hi Hat (Album Release Show)
05.30.18 – Phoenix, AZ @ Trunkspace
05.31.18 – Tuscon, AZ @ Club Congress
06.01.18 – El Paso, TX @ The Monarch
06.02.18 – Dallas, TX @ Three Links
06.03.18 – Austin, TX @ Cheer Up Charlies
06.04.18 – Houston, TX @ Satellite Bar
06.05.18 – New Orleans, LA @ Circle Bar
06.06.18 – Atlanta, GA @ Drunken Unicorn
06.07.18 – Asheville, NC @ The Mothlight
06.08.18 – Richmond, VA @ Strange Matter
06.09.18 – Baltimore, MD @ Joe2
06.10.18 – Philadelphia, PA @ Kung Fu Neck Tie
06.11.18 – New York, NY @ Alphaville
06.12.18 – Boston, MA @ Elks Lodge
06.15.18 – Ottawa, ON @ Ottawa Explosion Fest
06.16.18 – Toronto, ON @ The Baby G
06.17.18 – Columbus, OH @ Ace of Cups
06.18.18 – Chicago, IL @ The Empty Bottle
06.19.18 – St Paul, MN @ The Turf
06.20.18 – Winnipeg, MB @ Handsome Daughter
06.21.18 – Regina, SK @ T&A Vinyl and Fashion
06.24.18 – Vancouver, BC @ Astoria
06.25.18 – Seattle, WA @ Vera Project
06.26.18 – Portland, OR @ Mississippi Studios
06.27.18 – Redding, CA @ The Dip
06.28.18 – San Francisco, CA @ Hemlock Tavern