Chicago’s dance-punk, darkwave ensemble BEASTII release their first single “Justine” today (streaming now at Spotify HERE and Bandcamp HERE). Their new full-length studio album titled, Follower, comes out on September 6th, 2024 (Dark Circles Records). Pre-oder link HERE.
“On a surface level, the album is about chasing and being chased,” explains Jen Dot (aka Jen B. Larson, author of “Hit Girls: Women of Punk in the USA, 1975-1983” and former Swimsuit Addition guitarist and singer). “The title, Follower, has a rich tapestry of meanings, each revealing a different facet of the word. From spying to obsession, chase to consumption, and the pursuit of justice to surrender, the “follower” takes on many roles. It can be an energized hater, a scorned lover, a jealous lurker, a passive appreciator, or enthusiastic supporter.”
BEASTII, founded by Dot in Chicago in 2016, cite influences such as Wire, Au Pairs, Pylon, Soft Cell, Joy Division, Kate Bush, the Breeder’s, the B52’s, Moebius & Beerbohm, and Devo. Dot recorded the initial EP, Love Harder, over a few months, using a combination of live and electronic instruments. She had her friend, Chris Lee, master it. For live sets Jen and Chris put together a high-energy four-piece, combining elements from early ’80s post-punk, ’60s surf and garage rock, and ’90s alternative and grunge. Maureen Neer (Soddy Daisy and Bloodhype) and Becca Nisbet (Swimsuit Addition and The Baby Magic) joined them on bass and guitar, respectively.
In 2017, BEASTII put out their first LP, Can’t Wait, which received high praise. After the pandemic, Jen and Chris put a new line-up together, bringing Neer back to play live and adding multidisciplinary artist Jesse Fevvers on guitar. Longtime collaborators and friends Fevvers and Dot combined their talents and began a long writing process, and the result is BEASTII’s new album, Follower. They brought Asha Adisa (Orisun) in to record backing vocals and keys and tapped Kai Black (Orisun, Bussy Kween Power Trip) to play bass.
All the songs on Follower were written, performed, and produced by BEASTII, and recorded and mixed by Chris Lee at the VCR in Chicago, Illinois between January 2023 and March 2024. Lee has recorded hundreds of underground artists in Chicago, including notable acts such as Twin Peaks, Kenny Hoopla, Nnamdi, Show You Suck, Deeper, and Al Scorch.
Of the recording process Lee says “The songs on this album have taken shape in so many different ways. Some were recorded with me on drums playing along with a scratch bass or guitar going DI into headphones live at The VCR, some were created entirely in Garageband by Jen and Jesse and then slowly dubbed over with final parts. Sometimes we brought in MIDI data and re-voiced parts, sometimes we bounced out the original voices and imported them into Logic. We’re using Virtual Drummer parts Jen programmed that I duplicated and split into stems, drum parts Jesse played on my Digitakt, multiple passes of my kit recorded to do things I can’t do with four limbs. It’s just fun throwing all these diverse creative processes into one project. There’s no one right way to let an idea become reality!”
BEASTII will appeal to fans of The Hives, the Buzzcocks, Gang of Four, Wire, PJ Harvey, the Cramps.
Follower track listing:
1. Justine
2. The Limit
3. Cosmic Bummer
4. Spilt Milk
5. Evil Eye
6. Double-Sided Cig
7. Sell Out
8. Butch Beach
9. Ghost Follower
10. Subliminal
11. Into the Ground
12. Trusted Mystik
13. Be Sweet
BEASTII is:
Jen Dot – vocals, guitar, keys, electronic drums
Jesse Fevvers – vocals, guitar, electronic drums
Chris Lee – drums, backing vocals
Asha Adisa – vocals, keys
Kai Black – bass, keys
Maureen Neer – vocals, bass
FIND BEASTII ONLINE
Photo credit: Chris Nightengale
BEASTII from left to right: Jesse Fevvers, Asha Adisa, Jen Dot,
Chris Lee, Kai Black.
Veglam 
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