Karen Meat make bouncy, sunny pop songs with surprisingly dark and emotionally manipulative gooey centers. Lead single “On The Couch” is a nostalgic take on falling in love; it also foreshadows the anxieties that will inevitably tear the pairing apart. “I Made You A Card” and “Who Cares?” sound cute and precious on the surface, but they both recount a relationship based around codependency and addiction: “I took you out to the liquor store/ Where we bought mini-bottles because that’s all we could afford/ You drank everything, fell asleep on the floor/ And I made you throw up because you were so drunk,” on the former and on the questioning closing track: “I filled you with moonshine/ And looked at you with booze eyes/ Told you to come inside so you wouldn’t be cold anymore.” The On The Couch EP — the Des Moines, Iowa-based group’s second release — pulls off this balancing act largely due to the strength of their hooks and the personalities of dual vocalists (and the band’s founding members) Arin Eaton and Brad Turk, who play off each other in charming and tension-easing ways. That interplay is bound to put a smile on your face, but it’s the darker undercurrent that will keep you coming back and revisiting. Listen via Impose below.

Tour Dates:
06/02 Ames, IA @ DG’s Tap House
06/03 Des Moines, IA @ Vaudeville Mews (release show)
06/04 Rock Island, IL @ Rozz Tox
06/18 Columbia, MO @ Cafe Berlin
06/21 Lawrence, KS @ 8th Street Tavern
06/22 Wichita, KS @ Kirby’s Beer Store
06/23 Springfield, MO @ Outland Ballroom
06/24 St. Louis, MO @ Foam
06/25 Chicago, IL @ Red Line Tap
07/09 Des Moines, IA @ Vaudeville Mews (80/35 afterparty w/ Colleen Green)
07/15 Milwaukee, WI @ Riverwest Public House
07/16 Minneapolis, MN @ Palmer’s

The On The Couch EP is out 6/3 via Sump Pump Records. Pre-order it here. Their debut EP, Karen Meat & The Computer, is out now.