Nothing are set to release their new full-length Dance On The Blacktop later this month via Relapse. After revealing the LP's tracks "Zero Day" and "Blue Line Baby" earlier this summer, the Philadelphia shoegaze outfit have offered up "Carpenter's Son," another new song from the record. It's far and wide the band's most ethereal sonic offering yet, ditching the driving, Smashing Pumpkins–esque sound of past singles for stripped-down, morose dream-pop balladry.
According to Nothing's frontman and lyricist, Domenic Palermo, "The Carpenter's Son" is a reflection on religion, death, and his late father, who worked as a carpenter. "He built things, and he built me," explains the bandleader. "He struggled with addiction and anger and for a long time, and his idea of a fix was to use religion in a very similar, violent way. He left me peppered with too much reality for a young boy and subsequently also left me with an early disdain for Christianity. I often wondered how could I ever forgive a man whose sole purpose was to break everyone down around him."
A few years ago, Palermo's father died in a bicycle accident. His death barely registered as a surprise to the frontman. "I've lost many people at this point in my life and this only felt like another — nothing more," he admits. "I think the song really just speaks of the expectations of existence and how there aren't really many."
Nothing's Dance on the Blacktop hits shelves August 24th via Relapse. You can pre-order it here. For more on the band, check out their cover story in Revolver's new "Rule Breakers" issue, available now.
Below, watch Nothing's hilarious report on what they learned about what it takes to create a good documentary, which they filmed during the recording of Dance on the Blacktop.
