Indie rock band Hot Freaks are thrilled to release their new album Hot Freaks Forever that is out now.
IN support of the new music the band also announced new tour dates as support to The Happy Fits and Windser. See all tour dates below.
Once nearly lost to time, Minneapolis five piece Hot Freaks resurfaced nearly a decade after disbanding when their ten year old single, Puppy Princess, finally found an audience on TikTok and what was to-date only an obscure gem exploded into a bonafide viral hit.
At the time the five Freaks, frontman Leo Vondracek, guitarist Darin Dahlmeier, bassist Sarah Darnall, drummer Cody Brown, and keyboardist Celeste Heule, were already pondering a reunion show, but the new droves of devoted online acolytes demanded a full fledged tour alongside similar pop-rock phenomenons the Rare Occasions.
Like remembering how to ride a bike, the Freaks have effortlessly returned to full form, prepping a forthcoming tour with the Happy Fits with fresh jams uncovered from ancient times circa 2013, and new compositions from the present day.
Sophomore smash, HOT FREAKS FOREVER, ironically named for a band that once broke up, or perhaps presciently named for a fated comeback, is a jubilant addition to the Freaks’ discography that feels like a victory lap. Tapping into their long history, these 10 new tracks collect unreleased early works along with freshly minted music perfectly embodying their signature, high gloss dancy disco pop, with radiant notes of MGMT, Of Montreal, the Carpenters, and Mitski.
Lead single, LET’S START A COUNTRY, is one example of an unearthed artifact from the band’s earlier days. A treasure from a time capsule, having gestated for about 10 years, the infectious synth pop serenade has finally “found its home” as frontman Leo Vondracek puts it. Floating an unusual proposition, the track resurrects Hot Freaks’ familiar sound mixing toe-tapping disco beats with tongue-in-cheek sincerity. Kicking off with a fun little “whoo!” LET’S START A COUNTRY imagines a vegetarian utopia where lovers “living in a vacuum” start a country as easy as “one two three,” yet once the song’s narrator does “a little research” it “turns out you can’t just do this type of thing/ in fact it’s kinda regulated.” Despite the harsh light of reality, Hot Freaks’ uniquely catchy qualities, percussively perfect shakers, and preciously earnest handclaps, weave a wonderfully daydreamy ode to the romantic ideal of escaping into the paradise of a person you love more than the whole wide, and unfortunately real, world.
As the album progresses, the Freaks start to get a little freakier, playing with personas like a makeover montage in an 80’s movie. Track six, catchy as all get out love song, BOYFRIEND, imagines a college age romance embodying the voice of a smitten co-ed reflecting on her beau who dozes in bed while she prepares for not just her day, but a future that likely won’t include him. “I want to get out east next spring/ while you’re still dreaming” coos Vondracek, explaining, “the boyfriend isn’t going places, she is.” Bassist Sarah Alfano adds “It’s kinda like a country song cuz she has big dreams, but he’s stuck in the small town, she’ll leave but he’ll always pull on her heart—we’re like that country song too, breaking up the band and going our separate ways just to get back together, but at least we’re touring now.”
While other tracks explore a simplistic and childlike notion of love and intimacy, TOGETHER ABOVE presents a more one sided and desperate play. Introducing the album with an uptempo two-step rhythm and serene strings, Vondracek describes this speaker as a salesman pitching himself as the perfect partner singing, “Inside my heart there’s an eternity/ No doubt don’t fight it” amongst a shimmering production that’s so tight it might be described as high strung (violin pun intended).
Long boiling STUART LITTLE VIBES has been gestating for 10 years, composed just before the initial split. A classic Freaks banger, it captures the band’s traditionally glammy approach to quirky pop yet benefits from their matured studio skills. Playing out like a spun-up twee anthem with pitch-perfect arrangement, the tune is as precise as it is precarious, speeding along like a train that’s still laying it’s tracks, synthesizing the speaker’s nervous, but infectious energy—distilled into love-drunk lyrics like: “Wanna roast your almonds/ wanna give you chase/ I don’t got no worries/ let’s go now make haste.”
Heavenly LIONESS kicks it off with a bouncy bass line that might be physically impossible not to at least bob your head to. Catching a more groovy, yet still propellent tempo, Vondracek opens up with a familiar ‘dare me to do it’ gambit asking, “Should I say I want a facefull/ Or would that be distasteful?” As the song progresses, layered electric guitars trade off with very tasteful oohs and also ahhs evoking a heavenly vibe with interlocking parts that lap and wane like the tides of eternity just begging culminating in an experience that begs for repeat listens.
Speaking of, don’t be surprised to find yourself spinning HOT FREAKS FOREVER on perpetual repeat. At times almost impossibly precise, slick and savvy, this seductive selection also brings out a beguiling, intoxicating energy that’s as infectious as any impromptu dance party.
Hot Freaks Forever is streaming everywhere at https://lnk.to/hfforever
“Together Above” Music Video – https://youtu.be/_PwtQVGGT98
“Let’s Start a Country” Music Video – https://youtu.be/vyIHP7TfNJQ
Tour Dates
September 19 – Harrisburg, PA – HMAC
September 20 – Albany, NY – Empire Live
September 22 – Portland, ME – State Theatre
September 23 – Providence, RI – Fete Music Hall
September 24 – Baltimore, MD – Baltimore Soundstage
September 26 – Virginia Beach, VA – Elevation 27
September 27 – Asheville, NC – The Orange Peel
September 29 – Athens, GA – Georgia Theatre
September 30 – Columbus, SC- The Senate
October 1 – Birmingham, AL – Saturn
October 3 – Oklahoma City, OK – Beer City Music Hall
October 4 – San Antonio, TX – Paper Tiger
October 6 – Tucson, AZ – 191 Toole
October 7 – Santa Ana, CA – The Observatory
October 8 – Ventura, CA – Ventura Music Hall
October 10 – Santa Cruz, CA – The Catalyst
October 11 – Sacramento, CA – Goldfield Trading Post
October 13 – Salt Lake City, UT – The Union
October 14 – Boulder, CO – Fox Theatre
October 15 – Lawrence, KS – The Granada
October 17 – Bloomington, IL – Castle Theatre
October 18 – Milwaukee, WI – The Rave II
October 20 – Cincinnati, OH – Bogarts
October 21 – Lansing, MI – Hall 224
October 22 – Cleveland, OH – House of Blues
October 24 – Charlottesville, VA – Jefferson Theater
October 28 – Montclair, NJ – The Wellmont Theatre