Preoccupations' beautifully rough version of post-punk is equally life-affirming and well-versed in existential dread. The band's debut album, 2015's Viet Cong, mixed post-punk, psych-pop, shoegaze, noise, and electronics in fearless ways that nevertheless maintained a very human pulse. This connection to their humanity remained on all of their albums, though Preoccupations' music became subtler and more open-ended on 2016's Preoccupations, more anthemic on 2018's poised New Material, and more confrontational on 2022's Arrangements. Vocalist/bassist Matt Flegel and guitarist Scott Munro, a pair of musicians from Calgary, Alberta, Canada, formed Preoccupations in 2012. Flegel was a member of the celebrated Calgary indie rock band Women while Munro had formerly played guitar with Lab Coast. Flegel and Munro began working on songs together during a European tour as part of Chad VanGaalen's backing band; when they heard about the death of Women guitarist Chris Reimer, they realized it was time to start a new project. They recruited former Women drummer Mike Wallace and guitarist Danny Christiansen, who had worked with Flegel and Wallace in a Black Sabbath tribute act. Originally named Viet Cong, in 2013 the band released a four-song cassette -- cleverly titled Cassette -- that they sold at their shows during a North American tour with Freak Heat Waves. Following their performance at the 2014 CMJ Music Festival, the group signed to the Canadian label Flemish Eye, who issued two songs from the cassette as a single (in the U.S., Mexican Summer released an expanded seven-song version of the tape as a 12" vinyl EP in 2014).In January 2015, the band released their self-titled debut album. Produced by Graham Walsh, Viet Cong added noise and electronics to the band's moody mix of post-punk, shoegaze, and straight-ahead indie rock. Citing concerns that their name might be offensive to some, in April 2016 the band announced they had changed their name to Preoccupations. Their first album under that name, September 2016's Preoccupations, was a more considered effort that nevertheless highlighted the heavy and danceable sides of their music and featured a guest appearance by Wolf Parade's Dan Boeckner. A deluxe version of the album included a single with covers of Yellow Magic Orchestra's "Key" and the Raincoats' "Off Duty Trip." For their third album, March 2018's bluntly titled New Material, the band recruited producer Justin Meldal-Johnson, who helped add polish and a grander scope to their anthemic songwriting. That year, Preoccupations also teamed up with Protomartyr on Telemetry at Howe Bridge, a split single that found them covering each other's songs. Late in 2019, Preoccupations started work on their fourth album at Munro's Montreal studio, where they recorded all of the songs' foundational tracks. During the COVID-19 global pandemic, the band put the finishing touches on the album remotely, with Mikey Young handling the mastering and mixing by Walsh. In September 2022, Preoccupations self-released Arrangements, a guitar-dominated set of songs reminiscent of their early days. ~ Heather Phares & Mark Deming, Rovi

Pickathon 2015

Kamasi Washington

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