QUICKSAND CHANNEL MINOR THREAT & NEGATIVE APPROACH ON OG DISS TRACK “COOL GUY” | FIRST LP IN FIVE YEARS BRING ON THE PSYCHICS
EQUAL VISION RECORDS
Legendary independent New York-based rock label Equal Vision Records and Quicksand are pleased to present “Cool Guy,” the latest single to be lifted from the Friday, July 17 release of Bring On The Psychics, the first album in five years from the iconic NYC post-hardcore trio. “’Cool Guy’ is like an OG HC diss track, like ‘Small Man, Big Mouth’ by Minor Threat or ‘Hypocrite’ by Negative Approach,” the band said. “Sometimes you just gotta get those negative emotions out.”
Additionally, Quicksand recently announced its upcoming North American headline tour with Bane. Kicking off on Monday, August 3, at The Annex in Norfolk, VA, the tour will span August and early September, culminating in a performance at Royale in Boston, MA, on Thursday, September 3. Further support will be provided by Soul Blind. Tickets for all shows are on sale now HERE, and a full listing of dates can be found below.
Marking an entirely new era for the storied three-piece — guitarist/vocalist Walter Schreifels, bassist/vocalist Sergio Vega and drummer Alan Cage — Bring On The Psychics serves as the sonic bridge between the band’s heavy and influential Nineties sound and the ambitious, experimental output contained within its more recent era. Produced and mixed by Jon Markson (Drug Church, Drain) across 10 days, Bring On The Psychics once again finds Quicksand reinventing the sound they helped pioneer.
It’s impossible to overstate the influence that Quicksand has on the hardcore scene. Formed in New York City in 1990 out of the ashes of Gorilla Biscuits, Youth of Today, Burn and Bold, the band took the aggression of hardcore and added a more groove-driven crunch to it, unintentionally inventing the genre known today as a post-hardcore. After releasing two major-label masterpieces in the Nineties — 1993’s Slip and 1995’s Manic Compression — the band split up at the peak of its powers, only to reunite in 2012 and release Interiors and Distant Populations.
Inspired by a quote from scientist Carl Sagan, Bring On The Psychics, Quicksand’s first album in five years and Equal Vision Records debut, sees guitarist/vocalist Walter Schreifels examining his past through his present reality. “For this album, I was going back to a lot of my earlier influences about ‘break down the walls’ or ‘start today,’” he explains. “Regardless of whether you’re into hardcore or youth crew, they’re really cool records because they’re speaking to the time and providing possible paths to a better future … with mosh parts. That’s the energy that I wanted to bring to this.”
From the hook-driven heaviness of the opener “Get To It” to the shoegaze splendor of “Crystallize,” the band covers a lot of sonic ground on Bring On The Psychics, but it always sounds like Quicksand. Its technical virtuosity is on full display here as well, from bassist/vocalist Sergio Vega’s locked-in bass grooves on “Cool Guy” to Alan Cage’s dynamic drumming on the album’s title track. The band also stretched out, musically, on the album as evidenced by the breezy ballad “Days You Run To,” a song that might even surprise longtime fans. “To me, that is the kind of thing that Fugazi would do on their more chill kind of tunes,” Schreifels says of the laid-back feel of the aforementioned track. “It’s nice to have something that was more expansive to show the Pink Floyd side of Quicksand.”
That aspect of the band has never been a secret; anyone who has seen the band’s psychedelic light show can attest to that consciousness-expanding vibe. Bring On The Psychics just sees the band encapsulating their creative vision in a more fully integrated manner.
“I’m really psyched to play these songs live,” Schreifels summarizes. “I feel really fortunate to still be playing music with these guys and be able to take it to different places.”
Tour Dates
JUNE
18 — Hamburg, DE — Knust
18 — 21 – Dessel, BE — Graspop Metal Meeting
20 — Köln, DE — Luxor
22 — Wiesbaden, DE — Schlachthof Wiesbaden
23 — Berlin, DE — Hole44
25 — Ysselsteyn, NL — Jera On Air
27-28 —Stretford, UK — Outbreak Festival
AUGUST
03 — Norfolk, VA — The Annex *#
04 — Durham, NC — Motorco Music Hall *#
05 — Atlanta, GA — The Masquerade – Hell Stage *#
07 — Dallas, TX — AM/FM Backyard *#
08 — Houston, TX — White Oak Music Hall *#
09 — Austin, TX — Mohawk Austin *#
11 — Mesa, AZ — The Nile Theater *#
12 — Solana Beach, CA — Belly Up *#
13 — Los Angeles, CA — The Bellwether *#
14 — Fresno Crossing, CA — Strummer’s *#
15 — San Francisco, CA — The Castro Theatre *#
16 — Roseville, CA — Goldfield Trading Post Roseville *#
18 — Portland, OR — Wonder Ballroom *#
19 — Seattle, WA — The Showbox *#
21 — Salt Lake City, UT — The Depot *#
22 — Colorado Springs, CO — Black Sheep *#
23 — Englewood, CO — Gothic Theatre *#
25 — Saint Paul, MN — Amsterdam Bar and Hall *#
26 — Chicago, IL — Bottom Lounge *#
28 — Detroit, MI — El Club #
29 — Toronto, ON — East End United *#
31 — Washington, DC — 9:30 Club *#
SEPTEMBER
01 — Philadelphia, PA — Underground Arts *#
02 — Brooklyn, NY — The Brooklyn Monarch *#
03 — Boston, MA — Royale *#
* — w/ Bane
# — w/ Soul Blind
Artist Links
Photo Credit: Annette Rodriguez
