Rock music seems to be going through something of a Shirley-ssaince at the moment—even records that weren’t produced by Deafheaven and King Woman producer Jack Shirley possess that familiar harder-than-nails guitar effect that really should sound out of place on a pop-punk record by a group like Joyce Manor or Jeff Rosenstock. With his new album Suffer Summer, Brandon Williams’ Chastity project further closes the gap between metalhead riffs and vulnerable vocals and lyrics, with the record’s latest single providing the peak of both traits.
“When You Go Home I Withdrawal,” as Williams admits, is the darkest point on the record in its dealing with an inability to truly feel alone while secluding yourself from others, all while the LP’s hardest riff bolsters its catchiest chorus to certified earworm status (not a common feat among Chastity’s newfound label home of Deathwish Inc.). Hear the single below—featuring PUP’s Stefan Babcock singing backing vocals on the chorus—as it soundtracks a dramatic visual digging into the record’s themes.
Suffer Summer drops this Friday via Deathwish, and you can pre-save the album here. You can also read on for a brief Q&A with Williams about the new single and video, as well as the collaborative work that went into the album.
What was the general concept behind the video, and how does that tie in with the lyrics?
We wanted to play off of the bridge lyric, “You’re the ghost that runs the halls of my mind.” The character in the video is struggling to be alone. We follow him through these hallways as he chases the feeling of some previous togetherness.
Suffer Summer generally puts a positive spin on dark subject matter—how would you say this applies to “Withdrawal”?
I’d honestly say this is one of the more negative songs on the new record—which is maybe a good sign, that this is the depth of the negativity compared to other records?
What did Stefan Babcock’s contribution bring to the track?
It was awesome working with Stefan. He cares that things are great and not just good. I hope that I’m that same way, or can grow to be that way more. I was heading directly into the eye of the rip-off storm with this one part, and he helped to point our ship in a much more original direction. Stefan is both careful and chaotic, and it’s a great and rare combination, one that makes him an unreal songwriter.
What made you realize there was room for more vocal/writing collaboration on this record than on past releases?
I had more time and less pressure than ever, with so many great people around me who were down to contribute, I’m lucky. After the original 10 songs were recorded we went into another lockdown here, and I was like, “Hmm, I have more songs to write for this, and now I’ve got some time.” Twenty-four songs were written and recorded in the end, with 10 making it. Some parts were more casual than ever, having Linnea Siggelkow (from Ellis) sing on the record. She was coming to pick me up from the studio in London [Ontario] and we asked her, “Would you wanna sing on a song?” She was nice enough to, and it sounded so good that we kept thinking of other parts for her to sing on.
Anyways, I feel lucky that I have such talented people around me, and that those people also had a surplus of time during COVID [laughs].
