Last week, Ed Schrader’s Music Beat released their third album, Riddles. It’s a big leap for the Baltimore duo, not exclusively because Dan Deacon produced it, though the fellow Charm City mainstay certainly helped unlock some of the complex melodies and epic scope that were always lurking in the background of their music. Today, the band are sharing a video for the album’s title track. It’s the second video we’ve gotten this record cycle, following the late-night drive one for “Dunce,” and where that one highlighted the ominous feeling that’s often present in ESMB’s sound, this one focuses on the sense of ecstatic release.

It was directed by Jay Buim, who frames the clip as such: “On another timeline, in another iteration of this planet, Ed is bigger than Frank Sinatra. With this video, I tried to bring that world closer into view.” It starts off in smoky black-and-white, with Schrader and Devlin Rice walking moodily down the street, but abruptly shifts to bright color as soon as the music kicks off. A bunch of Baltimore friends — including Deacon, Lexie Mountain, Rozie Jordan, Kevin Blackstone, Kevin Sherry, Jeff McGrath, and more — play it up in front of the mic, before Schrader and Devlin come in to give the performance of a lifetime.

The band also recently performed as the musical guests on Adult Swim’s Williams Street Swap Shop — watch that here. And watch the video for “Riddles” below.

TOUR DATES:
03/09 Atlanta, GA @ Mammal Gallery
03/13 Dallas, TX @ Transit Bicycle Company
03/14 San Antonio, TX @ Paper Tiger
03/15 Austin, TX @ SXSW Official Showcase at 720 Club Patio, 10:45pm
03/17 Austin, TX @ SXSW Official Showcase at Sidewinder, 10:00 pm
03/19 Hot Springs, AK @ VOV Fest
03/20 Lawrence, KS @ Replay Lounge
03/21 Denver, CO @ Hi-Dive
03/23 Salt Lake City, UT @ Kilby Court
03/24 Boise, ID @ Treefort Music Fest
03/26 Reno, NV @ Holland Project
03/28 Los Angeles, CA @ Zebulon
03/29 San Francisco, CA @ Make Out Room
03/31 Portland, OR @ The Know
04/01 Seattle, WA @ The Vera Project
04/04 Sioux Falls, SD @ Total Drag Records
04/05 Minneapolis, MN @ Kitty Cat Klub
04/06 Des Moines, IA @ Vaudeville Mews
04/07 Milwaukee, WI @ Quarters Rock N Roll Palace
04/08 Chicago, IL @ Empty Bottle
04/08 Detroit, MI @ Marble Bar
04/10 Toronto, ON @ Baby G
04/11 Winooski, VT @ Monkey House
04/12 Providence, RI @ AS220
04/14 Philadelphia, PA @ Everybody Hits
04/15 Brooklyn, NY @ Baby’s All Right
05/01 Edinburgh, Scotland @ Sneaky Pete’s
05/02 Glasgow, Scotland @ The Hug and Pint
05/06 Manchester, UK @ Sounds from the Other City Festival
05/07 London, UK @ Moth Club
05/08 Paris, France @ Espace B
05/10 Madrid, Spain @ El Sol Sound Isidro
05/14 Lyon, France @ Grrnd Zero
05/16 Lausanne, Switzerland @ Le Bourg
05/17 Esslingen, Germany @ Komma
05/18 Prague, Czech Republic @007 Club
05/20 Berlin, Germany @ ACUD Macht Neu
05/23 Amsterdam, Netherlands @ Cinetol
05/25 Rotterdam, Netherlands @ WORM

Riddles is out now via Carpark Records.