THE SILENT BOYS – “SOUL OF THE SEA”
SHELFLIFE RECORDS/TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE
The Silent Boys have spent years in willful obscurity, hiding a back catalog of nine albums, awash in ear-tugging jangle pop and an undercurrent of haunting, Factory Records-style post-punk. The Silent Boys pull you into their upbeat and sometimes somber world where time has stopped in the mid-80’s, and bands like New Order, The Church, The Cure, and REM ruled the college radio airwaves.
The Silent Boys were once a constant part of the Richmond, Virginia alternative music scene, playing the local club circuit from the mid-80s until 1991. Wallace Dietz reformed the group in 1999 after the release of several Silent Boys songs on various indie record label compilations. (Firestation/Kindercore/Tweenet). Since then, the group has continued to write songs with a nod to the underground guitar pop greats of the 80’s—the Feelies, the Bats, the Go-Betweens and others.
“We sound like a retro-80’s band because, in every way, we ARE an 80’s band!”
“Soul Of The Sea” is the first single taken from their upcoming album, Lightning Bugs Are Smiling, which will be co-released by Shelfife and Too Good To Be True Records (France) on November 6, 2026. The words are cowritten by vocalist/rhythm guitarist Wallace Dietz and his wife, Carlie. While painting the cover that graces the single, Carlie was inspired to write down her fondest beach memories. Wallace just happened to have a song in need of lyrics when he noticed the notecard on her drawing board. “Rock to sleep as halyards clang in the wind…..”
The Silent Boys
Lightning Bugs Are Smiling
(Shelflife Records/Too Good To Be True)
Release Date: November 6, 2026
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