SHARE NEW SINGLE ‘TASTE THE MONEY’
LISTEN HERE:
NEW EP COMING EARLY 2023
“Stuffed with fizzing hooks and brilliantly frank lyrics, [Almost Free] could be FIDLAR’s best record yet” – NME
“FIDLAR come of age on inventive, spectacular and shapeshifting third album…an absolute joy to behold. It’s a trip to listen to and an instant modern classic. You really won’t hear another record quite like this in 2019.” – Kerrang
“The charm of their hymns to being broke and wasted is endlessly infectious.” – The Guardian
“Something genuinely special” – DIY
Today, Southern California punk band FIDLAR have shared a new single, ‘Taste The Money‘, the third offering from their forthcoming EP arriving in early 2023. It follows their vicious comeback song ‘FSU‘, which marked the end of their three-year hiatus this summer, and most recent single ‘Sand On The Beach‘, which found the band embracing and evolving their surf-rock roots while showcasing frontman Zac Carper’s signature lyricism that seamlessly teeters between endearing and irreverent.
Teaming up with Grammy Award-winning recording legend Dave Sardy (Spoon, LCD Soundsystem, Red Hot Chili Peppers), who also produced the previous two singles, ‘Taste The Money’ finds the band continuing to hone in on the qualities that have made them one of the most beloved acts of the past decade – this time serving up a pop-punk sizzler full of hooks that’ll rattle around your head for weeks. Of the track, the band explain: “This song is about trying to do DIY psychedelic therapy. It did not work.”
Listen to ‘Taste The Money’ here: https://youtu.be/GjgMJPxLO_E
Ushering in a new era of FIDLAR, ‘Taste The Money’, ‘Sand On The Beach’ and ‘FSU’ serve as the band’s first original music since the release of their third studio album Almost Free in 2019. Upon its premiere in August, ‘FSU’ electrified fans around the world & garnered acclaim from the likes of NME, Kerrang!, DIY, Dork, Upset, Gigwise and more, with Consequence calling the track “explosive, hyper aggressive and perfectly dumb.” Abrasive in all the right ways, ‘FSU’ combines Carper’s point-blank-as-ever lyricism with walls of instrumentation that crash and recede like violent waves, making for a brutally truthful 2 minutes of shouting into the void. The track arrived alongside an aptly chaotic accompanying music video directed by the band’s longtime collaborator Ryan Baxley, which features the band bloodied, bruised and feral as they tear at raw steak with their teeth and hand-poke tattoos.
‘Sand On The Beach’, meanwhile, was joined by a video – again directed by Baxter – that sees the band cranking the melodrama up to 10 and embodying characters that would feel at home in a 1990s beachside soap opera. Catch up on that one here.
On the heels of several sold-out shows this fall in Los Angeles, New York and more, the trio – comprised of Carper, Max Kuehn and Brandon Schwartzel – recently announced an upcoming tour spanning various cities in California. Kicking off February 17th, 2023 in Santa Cruz, the run will see the group bringing their blitzing live show to venues across their home state. Following raucous back-to-back nights at The Fonda Theater in Los Angeles recently, New Noise Magazine stated that “if these insanely fun comeback shows and their pummeling new music are any indication, the next phase in the FIDLAR cinematic universe is poised to be rad as hell.” Tickets for the newly announced concerts are on sale now, and a complete list of upcoming tour dates can be found further below and via the band’s site HERE.
‘Taste The Money’ single art (click for hi-res)
Starting out as a group of drunken punks playing gnarly house shows around Los Angeles in the early 2010’s, FIDLAR’s fanbase exploded and congealed into “FIDIOTS”: fans who show their dedication to both the band and their mantra of “fuck it dog, life’s a risk.” With songs like ‘Cheap Beer‘ and ‘Wake Bake Skate‘, the light speed rocket that was 2012’s eponymous album blasted them into the stratosphere where they had the room to expand the idea of the band. Being thrust into the loneliness of space, they were confronted by the void and slog of touring and responded to their introspection with 2015’s TOO, where they grappled with how to age gracefully as hard partying punks headed towards their 30s. This pushed the band further to the edges of their comfort zone, as the group of SoCal weirdos suddenly found themselves tearing up stages at gigantic festivals like Coachella, Lollapalooza, Reading and Leeds and more. Always continuing to propel, refine and expand their sound, the band delivered their most recent album Almost Free in 2019 – a project that gave audiences a glimpse beyond their signature “punk and indie” influences with tracks like The Beastie Boys-tinged ‘Get Off My Rock‘ and heartbreak duet ‘Called You Twice‘ featuring Grammy-nominated artist K. Flay.
During the pandemic when they were unable to tour, each band member separately dove into their own pet projects and experimented with different styles of music. These individual endeavours unintentionally caused them to shake off the impulse to layer “bells and whistles” (not literally, but kinda) to their songs, like they had been doing progressively over the years. Now over a decade together as a band – one that’s seen them duck-dive the choppy waves that are the modern music industry – FIDLAR are ready for the next gnarly set. Armed with three chords, the truth, and some jazz cabbage, FIDLAR has a newfound appreciation of not only where they came from, but where they are now.
@thebristolnomad / @bristolnomad_gigphotography
Role: Photographer / Reviewer / Interviewer
Chief, the one that bugs the team for team for their reviews and images. Creator and founder of The Bristol Gig Guide. Can usually be found swamped in admin or getting cramp kneeling at the front of a gig.
Available for: Gig Shoots, Gig Reviews, Photo Shoots, Album and Single cover shoots, Videography work, Interviews and Touring
First attended gig: Republica, circa 1996.
First gig shot: Hands Off Gretel, at The Louisiana!
Dream gig: Huge metalhead and my ultimate dream gig would be shooting my heroes Slipknot at a huge stadium gig, or as festival headliners. And to experience shooting a headline tour outside the UK
