Destroyer will release their 12th LP, Have We Met, on January 31st via Merge Records. The ever-morphing indie rock act, fronted by Canadian singer-songwriter (and former New Pornographers member) Dan Bejar, previewed the record with lead single “Crimson Tide.”
Throughout the song — a slow-burn of glowing synths, chiming piano and thumping bass — Bejar speak-sings of strange characters (“You watch the blonde make mincemeat of the brunette/An actress pays her debt to Satan again and again”) and surreal self-reflections (“I was like the laziest river, a vulture predisposed to eating off floors/No, wait, I take that back — I was more like an ocean, stuck inside hospital corridors”).
Director David Galloway accompanied the track with a mysterious video featuring random vignettes (a farmer gazing out at nature, a woman swimming with a bandaged face) that appear to merge as the scenes continue. Throughout, Bejar sings against a black background on a stage illuminated by a single spotlight.
In a statement, Galloway detailed his vision for the video, which he titles Ashcroft, “an ambiguous short, an art-house film that explores time, memory, fruit, the landscape of the British Columbia interior, and recovery from — and into — deception.”
“Ashcroft is not a place of passive rest, but rather an intoxicating playground for excavation and manipulation’ is a quote from the filmmakers’ press release,” he continued. “Movies need songs [kind of] and songs need movies [videos?]. This is a music video about a movie, or for a movie, or really just with a movie. The point is: they love each other. With ‘Crimson Tide,’ Destroyer introduces listeners to yet another version of the Bejar Enigma, and ushers viewers to seats in an alternate cinematic universe. The dramatic music video that ties in to film is a lost art. Or maybe it’s just a vulgar one. Either way, there’s no rotten tomatoes here. Only rotten apples.”
Have We Met follows Destroyer’s 2015 album, Poison Season. They will promote the LP on a North American 2020 tour that kicks off February 21st in Portland, Oregon, and wraps March 20th in Vancouver, British Columbia.
Destroyer Tour Dates
February 21 – Portland, OR @ Aladdin Theater
February 22 – San Francisco, CA @ August Hall
February 23 – Los Angeles, CA @ Regent Theater
February 24 – Tucson, AZ @ Club Congress
February 26 – Austin, TX @ The Mohawk
February 27 – Dallas, TX @ Club Dada*
February 28 – Lawrence, KS @ Granada Theater
February 29 – St. Paul, MN @ Turf Club
March 1 – Chicago, IL @ Thalia Hall
March 2 – Detroit, MI @ Deluxx Fluxx
March 4 – Toronto, ON @ Opera House
March 5 – Montreal, QC @ Theatre Fairmount
March 6 – Boston, MA @ The Sinclair
March 7 – New York, NY @ Brooklyn Steel
March 8 – Philadelphia, PA @ Underground Arts
March 9 – Washington, DC @ Black Cat
March 11 – Carrboro, NC @ Cat’s Cradle
March 12 – Atlanta, GA @ Terminal West
March 13 – Nashville, TN @ Mercy Lounge
March 14 – St. Louis, MO @ Blueberry Hill
March 15 – Omaha, NE @ The Waiting Room
March 16 – Denver, CO @ Bluebird Theater
March 17 – Salt Lake City, UT @ Urban Lounge
March 19 – Seattle, WA @ Neumos
March 20 – Vancouver, BC @ Vogue Theatre