Speedy Ortiz – “Plough” (Stereogum Premiere)
Though I was originally drawn to Speedy Ortiz by the way they reimagined the sound of ’90s greats, what’s kept me around has been very different. It’s all there in the little details. Think of the way “No Below” built from a quiet confessional to a guitar freak-out effortlessly, but naturally, or how “Tiger Tank” ended on a drum fill to nothing, leaving you hanging and craving more in the best way. The band works wonders — usually in under three minutes.
“Plough,” the third single from their upcoming debut Major Arcana comes with some great moments too. It features Sadie Dupuis singing in her prettiest vocal take I’ve heard, “Stop shaking while you’re freaking the fuck out,” and comes with a sparkly coda that matches “Tiger Tank” in the unpredictable ending department. Of course in between all of that is a rollercoaster of angular guitars, surprise melodies, and pounding drums. It’s somewhat of a tease in a way, because “Plough” has enough hooks and great ideas that it could have been, like, 3 songs; but then again that’s quickly becoming Speedy’s makers mark. They fit a bunch of great and different ideas together to make an incredible song, but now after this third single, it seems like they just have to fit all the songs together and they’ll have an incredible album. Fortunately we won’t have to wait much longer since the album is out soon, and the band has just launched a pretty massive tour. Give “Plough” a listen and check out the new tour dates below.
Major Arcana is out 7/9 Carpark
Tour Dates:
07/05 – Brooklyn, NY @ Death By Audio
07/06 – Boston, MA @ Great Scott
07/09 – Hudson, NY @ The Half Moon Pub
07/10 – Cleveland, OH @ Happy Dog
07/11 – Detroit, MI @ Magic Stick
07/12 – Kalamazoo, MI @ Milhouse
07/14 – Minneapolis, MN @ College Bar
07/15 – St. Louis, MO @ Melt
07/16 – Kansas City, MO @ Czar Bar
07/17 – Omaha, NE @ The West Wing
07/18 – Denver, CO @ UMS Festival
07/19 – Salt Lake City, UT @ Salt Haus
07/20 – Boise, ID @ The Red Room
07/21 – Portland, OR @ Habesha
07/22 – Olympia, WA @ House Show
07/23 – Seattle, WA @ The Comet
07/25 – San Francisco, CA @ Bottom of the Hill
07/28 – San Diego, CA @ Soda Bar
07/29 – Phoenix, AZ @ Last Exit Live
07/31 – Oklahoma City, OK @ The Conservatory
08/01 – Denton, TX @ J&J’s Pizza
08/02 – Austin, TX @ Mohawk
08/04 – New Orleans, LA @ Circle Bar
08/05 – Birmingham, AL @ The Forge
08/06 – Atlanta, GA @ 529
08/07 – Athens, GA @ Farm 255
08/08 – Charlotte, NC @ The Milestone
08/09 – Durham, NC @ The Pinhook
08/10 – Richmond, VA @ Strange Matter
08/12 – Baltimore, MD @ Metro Gallery
08/13 – Philadelphia, PA @ Golden Tea House