Jason Albertini has been involved in indie rock since that term still had aesthetic meaning. Albertini first played with Duster, who released three records in the late ’90s on Up Records, then released a string of records from 2006 to 2011 under the name Helvetia. Those Helvetia records won him opening dates for The Meat Puppets and Built to Spill. Then, after having run monitors for the band, he was asked to replace longtime Built to Spill bassist Brett Nelson. Now—joined by Duster’s Dove Amber, Love As Laughter’s Zeke Howard, Samantha Stidham, and Built to Spill guitarist Jim Roth—he’s releasing Dromomania, his second LP for Indianapolis’s Joyful Noise. We’re pleased to be premiering the entire thing, which you can hear below.
But don’t come expecting any warmed-over takes on “Carry the Zero.” That title is the clinical term used to describe someone with the uncontrollable urge to wander, and while Dromomania‘s first few tracks could’ve been scraped from the resin of indie’s golden era, Albertini isn’t afraid to take us way, way out. There are transmissions from the psychedelic pocket (“Pink Finish,” “Rebel Beans”), underdriven pop songs delivered with a dead stare (“See Saw Sow”), and drone-fakes that quickly resolve into lurching folk tunes (“Crumbs Like Saucers”). But the band are at their best when Albertini draws his disparate influences together, as he does on single “A Dot Running for the Dust.”
You can stream Dromomania in its entirety below. The album’s art and track list, as well as Helvetia’s current North American tour dates, are also below.
Dromomania track list
“Bermuda”
“The Rubber Maids”
“A Dot Running for the Dust”
“Rebel Beans”
“Crumbs Like Saucers”
“Shower Radio”
“Psychomagic”
“See Saw Sow”
“Olaf”
“Pink Finish”
“Dromomania”
“Feeling the Warm Hair”
Helvetia tour dates
September
29 — Allston, MA — Brighton Music Hall*
30 — Allston, MA — Brighton Music Hall*
October
1 — Allston, MA — Brighton Music Hall*
2 — Philadelphia, PA — Union Transfer*
3 — Washington, DC — 9:30 Club*
4 — Pittsburgh, PA — Mr. Smalls Theatre*
5 — Cincinnati, OH — The Woodward*
6 — Louisville, KY — Headliners*
7 — Lawrence, KS — The Bottleneck*
8 — Fort Collins, CO — Downtown Artery
9 — Denver, CO — Bluebird*
10 — Boulder, CO — Fox Theatre*
16 — Vancouver, BC — The Media Club
17 — Seattle, WA — Barboza
24 — Portland, OR — Mississippi Studios
Dromomania is out October 2 on Joyful Noise. You can preorder it here.
