The Coathangers Announce Release of Sixth Album

Nearly three years after they made a bold leap into maturity with Nosebleed Weekend, The Coathangers will release their freshly crafted sixth album on March 8, via longtime label Suicide Squeeze.

Like that last one, The Devil You Know was tracked at Valentine Recording Studios in Laurel Canyon with producer Nic Jodoin, and looks to refine the band’s sound even further. As Julia Kugel puts it, “I don’t care what our previous image was. That’s not us now.”

Of particular interest is this passage from the label’s press missive concerning the album: “Recognizing that each member had become entrenched in their own style of songwriting (guitarist/vocalist Julia Kugel excelled at the melodic pop songs, drummer/vocalist Stephanie Luke belted out the gritty rock tunes, bassist/vocalist Meredith Franco drove the post-punk and no-wave angles of the band), the trio became determined to meld their established takes on vitriolic punk, playful house-party anthems and heartworn ballads into a new sound that captured the vitality of their early years while honing their individual strengths into new communal achievements. The result of this newfound discipline, depth and dimension is the first Coathangers record written as a true unit, as each member learned how to imbue their bandmates’ songs with their own personal touch.”

The band’s always maintained an acutely unique and invigorating sound in the largely homogenous landscape of punk/indie rock; even when their scrappiness gets a polishing off, as on Nosebleed Weekend, they’ve kept their vision and individuality lucidly intact. Thus, we are as psyched as ever to hear this next turn in their journey.

Photo by Matt Odom.