If you’ve tapped into Frog Eyes’ unique output at any point over the past two decades, you’re probably aware that they’re less of a hit-single band and more of a full-album-experience project. If that wasn’t already proven on, say, 2003’s The Golden River where much of the tracklist bleeds into each other while Carey Mercer’s distinct vocals and their continuously creative accompaniment pull the band toward the experimental side of Canada’s mid-’00s indie boom, then consider Mercer’s return to the project after a brief stint releasing music as Soft Plastics.
“One of the interesting things about The Bees is its lack of a clear ‘hit’—when we were talking about singles, every song was put forth by someone in the band or working with the band,” he shares of Frog Eyes’ latest album, which is set for release on April 29 via Paper Bag Records. “So for me to talk about one song is to talk about them all, they all need each other, they are like sections of a bigger painting—cool on their own, and richer when understood as part of something bigger.”
Ahead of that album’s release, the band is sharing another sample in the form of the opening track “Rainbow Stew,” which leans into Mercer’s penchant for surreal lyrical imagery and his backing band’s talent for crafting driving jangle pop. “‘Rainbow Stew,’” he adds, “is stuffed full of these connected images—fun images, funny images—moving into images of despair, failure, then violence, even. It’s a short burst of movement and dynamic change. And, most importantly, it’s one for the weirdos.”
Hear it below.
