It’s hard to say how the Quicksand reunion is going at this point. The quartet started a monthlong tour at the beginning of September, and after six shows, guitarist Tom Capone was arrested in Arizona for shoplifting and resisting arrest. The rest of the band quickly issued a statement, claiming Capone hadn’t been involved in the writing or recording of Quicksand’s upcoming third LP (and first in 22 years), Interiors, and furthermore, they’d be finishing the tour (18 more dates!) as a three-piece. They wrapped up their jaunt this past Sunday in Brooklyn, and by pretty much all accounts, they still delivered the goods even without the second guitarist. (Frontman Walter Schreifels was left to carry the entire load, but if any musician today is capable of doing the work of two men, it’s Schreifels.)

Even so, it’s an exceedingly strange story, especially considering Interiors is still more than a full month out from its actual release. Will Capone’s absence overshadow the LP, or is that an afterthought? What the fuck exactly happened in Arizona, and would Quicksand have reunited if they’d known it was gonna go down that way? Most people probably don’t think too much about these things, but I find them endlessly fascinating.

I’m mostly just really happy that Quicksand completed and delivered Interiors before things got weird. I love the album, and I’ve been listening to it straight through on repeat since I got the advance sometime back in August. It’s fantastic. The band already dropped lead single “Illuminant,” which I wrote about here — and today, they give us “Cosmonauts,” which FWIW is my personal favorite track on Interiors. It’s mellower, more melodic, and more spacious than the Quicksand of old, but it points the way toward a future I’d love to see them pursue, if they choose to keep going in their current incarnation. I hope they do, because this song is fucking magnificent. I mean, that chorus, man. Give me a goddamn break. Just unreal. Listen.

Interiors is out 11/10 via Epitaph. Pre-order it here.