The Minneapolis rock band 12 Rods got together in 1992 and developed a searching, contemplative style that a lot of people compared to Radiohead. The band’s 1996 EP Gay? is one of those records that got a 10.0 in Pitchfork back in that site’s early years. After releasing four albums, 12 Rods broke up in 2004. In 2015, Justin Vernon’s Chigliak label reissued 12 Rods’ 2002 album Lost Time, and the band played a one-off reunion show in Minneapolis. Now, frontman Ryan Olcott is bringing 12 Rods back, essentially as a solo project, and he’s got a new LP ready to go.

In 2021, Ryan Olcott announced on Facebook that he was recording a new 12 Rods album, the first since 2002. That LP started off in lockdown, as Olcott went to work on unfinished demos, and he turned them into the new record If We Stayed Alive, which is coming out this summer. Olcott says, “These are songs that I forgot about, but upon finding them, I thought, ‘Wow, these are actually OK.'” Now that the LP is done, Olcott says, “I think it’s the best material I’ve had to offer so far.”

Today, Olcott has shared the new single “My Year (This Is Going To Be),” which 12 Rods actually played live at that Minneapolis reunion show in 2015. It’s a glowing, bittersweet jam that truly evokes a certain ’90s alt-rock sound that barely exists anymore. Below, listen to “My Year” and check out the If We Stayed Alive tracklist.

TRACKLIST:
01 “All I Can Think About”
02 “My Year (This Is Going To Be)”
03 “Private Spies”
04 “Comfortable Situation”
05 “The Beating”
06 “Hide Without Delay”
07 “Twice”

If We Stayed Alive is out 7/7 on American Dreams.