Wharf Cat Records will release a 2xLP compilation benefitting the American Civil Liberties Union this spring. At Ad Hoc, Wharf Cat’s Michelle Nigro explains how she and partner Trip Warner conceived of the project in the aftermath of the 2016 election: “Trip and I began talking about a way Wharf Cat Records could help. As a record label, making a compilation record to benefit the ACLU was an obvious answer.” They’re taking their commitment to the cause pretty seriously, too: For every $32 double album, $30 will go to the ACLU.

The Brooklyn label specializes in aggressively noisy punk, off-kilter pop, and other outré sounds, and this project’s 22-song tracklist effectively demonstrates that aesthetic with selections from Merchandise, the Men, Palberta, Weeping Icon, Snakehole, Pop. 1280, Psychic Blood, Blanche Blanche Blanche, and more. They’re pairing today’s announcement with the release of Alice Cohen’s contribution, “Hourglass,” which they’ve dubbed “a pop track that could be a megahit in a less ugly world.” Cohen herself adds:

It’s sort of a pop song about facing your own mortality, with the symbol of the hourglass, and “time running out.” It’s about urgency. The choruses are more uplifting, with fairy tale imagery, which is a theme I’ve been exploring: castles, dragons and angels, but in a crumbling, fractured way. The hourglass is about the urgency to enjoy life, even when things are falling apart.

Hear “Hourglass” below, where you can also find the tracklist and pre-order info.

TRACKLIST:
01 Dollar Band – “Too Sensitive”
02 The Men – “Shimmer And Shine”
03 Psychic Blood – “Dissident”
04 Mail Thief – “Pliable”
05 Ornament – “Faithful Essence”
06 Alice Cohen – “Hourglass”
07 Palberta – “When I Come”
08 Weeping Icon – “Ankle”
09 SIGNAL – “Park After Dark”
10 Old Maybe – “Making Alone (Demo)”
11 Snakehole – “Dorian Grey Elephants”
12 Pop. 1280 – “When No One Cares”
13 Jeff Zagers – “Sunday Sunny Mill Valley Groove Day”
14 Abandon – “Calorie Giri”
15 Blanche Blanche Blanche – “Size Blind (Live in Brooklyn)” 2016)”
16 The Sediment Club – “B And The Electric Kill”
17 Kate Mohanty – “Priorities”
18 Merchandise – “Out Of Time”
19 Profligate – “Don’t Let Go”
20 House of Feelings – “Keep on Running (Black Cola Coffee Mix)”
21 Cheerleader – “Vain”
22 Horoscope – “Bri”

Wharf Cat’s ACLU benefit comp is out 4/20. Pre-order it at the label site or Bandcamp.site or Bandcamp.