Don Giovanni Records have announced the new album from R. Ring titled War Poems, We Rested. War Poems, We Rested is the first full length release from R. Ring since 2017's Ignite The Rest. The band features Kelley Deal (of The Breeders) and Mike Montgomery (of Ampline). Laura King (of Bat Fangs) contributed drums and other significant arrangements to the album as well.
Along with the album announcement, R. Ring have released the album's lead single "Still Life" to digital streaming platforms, along with an accompanying music video.
The album will be released on January 27, 2023 and it is the band's first full-length since their 2017 release Ignite The Rest. War Poems, We Rested is available for pre-order now HERE.
"Still Life" is available across all streaming platforms, and Bandcamp now.
Shortly after the release of their gloriously homespun 2017 debut Ignite the Rest, beguiling indie rock duo R. Ring began working on material for their follow-up. Kelley Deal and Mike Montgomery collaborated on fragments, again enlisting drummer Laura King, Lori Goldston on cello, and Joe Suer on vibraphone. Of course, R. Ring and friends had no clue that their process would be sidelined by a pandemic.
The album’s opener and lead single “Still Life” - streaming everywhere now - declares itself as the first of many thrilling stylistic fake-outs. In this case, Laura King’s colossal drums quickly crescendo before toppling into a bone-dry torch song. The taunting top-line dances like a ghostly Marianne Faithful across a seasick chord progression embellished by Suer’s vibes.
Deal reflects on the song's lyrics: “It’s possible, sometimes, through substance abuse or self delusion, to exist in a realm of altered reality, where you imagine your life to be a delicious bowl of fresh fruit. When you finally wipe the haze off the mirror, you see through more sobered eyes that the fruit is rotting and the bowl is full of worms.”
