SPILL NEWS: THE NEW PORNOGRAPHERS SHARE “PURE STICKER SHOCK” FROM UPCOMING LP ‘THE FORMER SITE OF’

THE NEW PORNOGRAPHERS SHARE “PURE STICKER SHOCK” FROM UPCOMING LP THE FORMER SITE OF

MERGE RECORDS

The New Pornographers share “Pure Sticker Shock”, the latest single from their highly anticipated new album, The Former Site Of, due March 27, 2026, on Merge Records. The album is available for pre-order now via both Merge Records and the band’s webstore. The record is also available in an exclusive “Mai Tai” LP variant and “Spilled Ink” LP variant.

The band turns its focus inward on “Pure Sticker Shock” as frontperson A.C. Newman’s lyrics grapple with self-worth over jamming synth-pop refrains. “This song is not about a specific event, but it has felt very ‘applicable’ to me and this year of my life,” Newman shares, “It basically asks the question ‘What has worth? Who is deciding?’ Your market value is not always your value.”

On The Former Site Of, the tenth studio album from the acclaimed supergroup, ten short stories of people at personal and societal extremes are collected as meticulously crafted pop songs. The record was first crafted by Newman in his home studio before being brought to the band, composed of Newman, Kathryn Calder, Neko Case, John Collins, and Todd Fancey. The group is joined for the first time by storied session drummer Charley Drayton (Divinyls, The Rolling Stones, Fiona Apple). Josh Wells (Destroyer, Black Mountain) will join as the touring drummer for the band’s upcoming dates in the Spring.

Of the making of the album, Newman notes, “Having time in my studio really opened things up. I don’t like wasting my bandmates’ time, and always felt guilty when I’d give them a song, ask them to do something, then completely change the song and ask them to do it again. Now I can get the skeleton of a song together first—just a couple of elements, the key feeling, really, as little as possible—before bringing it to the band and running from there.”

The band will kick off their U.S. tour on April 22 at The Wilbur in Boston with stops at New York’s Webster Hall, Los Angeles’ Teragram Ballroom, Chicago’s The Metro, Washington D.C.’s 9:30 Club, and many more, with support from Will Sheff of Okkervil River.

In addition to “Pure Sticker Shock,” the album features the group’s most recent single, “Votive”, released in January to acclaim from The New York Times, Pitchfork, AV Club, and more. The album’s first single, “Ballad Of The Last Payphone,” is available as a limited 7-inch vinyl first release. Paste named it one of their Best New Songs, raving that “‘Ballad Of The Last Payphone’ hits a different kind of nerve. Less giddy power-pop, more slow-burn meditation, the track leans into melancholy with acoustic strums, ghostly pedal steel, and vocals that swirl like a memory you can’t quite shake.”

The New Pornographers have released nine studio albums, including their classic debut, Mass Romantic, reissued in 2021 to celebrate its 21st anniversary. Their latest, 2023’s Continue as a Guest, marked their debut for Merge Records; New York Magazine lauded, “The New Pornographers are a massive unit bursting with unique and intersecting talents…the band’s ninth album serves another helping of their signature dish,” while Brooklyn Vegan named it “one of The New Pornographers’ most lush albums, thick with synthesizers and horns and harmonies…their unique chemistry is as distinct and appealing as ever.”

Tour Dates

April 22—Boston, MA—The Wilbur*
April 23—New York, NY—Webster Hall*
April 24—Glenside, PA—Keswick Theatre*
April 25—Rochester, NY—Water Street Music Hall*
April 27—Detroit, MI—El Club*
April 29—Millvale, PA—Mr. Smalls Theatre*
April 30—Cleveland, OH—House of Blues*
May 1—Milwaukee, WI—Turner Hall*
May 2—Minneapolis, MN—The Fitzgerald Theater*
May 3—Chicago, IL—The Metro*
May 5—Englewood, CO—Gothic Theatre*
May 6—Salt Lake City, UT—The Commonwealth Room*
May 8—Seattle, WA—The Showbox*
May 9—Portland, OR—Aladdin Theater*
May 11—San Francisco, CA—The Castro Theatre*
May 12—Los Angeles, CA—Teragram Ballroom*
May 13—Phoenix, AZ—Crescent Ballroom*
May 15—Austin, TX—Mohawk Outside*
May 16—Dallas, TX—The Kessler Theater*
May 17—Baton Rouge, LA—Chelsea’s Live*
May 19—Atlanta, GA—Variety Playhouse*
May 20—Saxapahaw, NC—Haw River Ballroom*
May 21—Washington, DC—9:30 Club*

*with Will Sheff (of Okkervil River)

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