Canyons and Locusts harness tension and tenderness on new EP ‘The Red Angel’
The Boston + Phoenix melodic noise-rock duo unleash a loud, fuzzed-out, and unapologetic record on Friday, March 15
‘The Red Angel’ is dedicated to late Red on Red Records founder Justine Covault
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Photo Credit: Courtesy of Canyons and Locusts
Boston, MA [March 15, 2024] – Canyons and Locusts are a band built on impulses and urgency. And when the two align in a blissful union of melodic noise-rock, the end result sounds something like The Red Angel, the Boston and Phoenix duo’s magnetic new EP, set for release on Friday, March 15.
Led by a quartet of singles dating back to last fall, the six-track, 13-minute record packs a wallop; tidal waves of fuzz crash down upon the melodic shores of indie, alternative, and guitar-rock, all fueled by a breakneck pace that finds each song roaring to its conclusion before the listener can catch its breath.
But underneath the tense, barnstorming surface is a tender core, one that finds vocalist and guitarist Justin Keane and drummer Amy Young bound by common interests – a feverish approach to crafting gritty, weathered rock and roll; a genuine trust in the other’s ability to understand the Canyons and Locusts core sonic identity; and a mutual love and appreciation for Justine Covault, the late Red on Red Records founder who passed away last summer, less than a year after her label released their debut album, Roll The Dice, in 2022.
“If we were making any statement with this record, it would be to just make loud, heartfelt noise in service to and in honor of your feelings, the people in your corner, and the things and people you love and who love you back,” says Keane.
And Young agrees, adding: “I think both in honor of Justine and aligning with our personal approaches to life, it's just about doing what you want – things that don't hurt anyone, don't trample on anything, and are just pure acts of making the music you want with the people you want to and hoping that people can feel what it means to us...or even just get a line stuck in their head and come back for more.”
Its title a not-so-subtle nod to Covault’s colorful hair color and personal brand, The Red Angel is a cathartic release of pent-up tension, a fiery and impassioned record that redefines notions of “noise-rock” and ignores convention. Three of its songs fly by in under two minutes of runtime – lead single “Buck Dharma’s Eyes”; anti-Valentine’s Day jam “Love Goes Down The Drain”; and EP closer “Wave Out Sunkiss” – and the rest are just as economical: “To Art Bell” and “Soo All The Way” inch just past the two-minute mark, while “Donna Summer,” clocking in at an expansive 3:34, serves as Canyons and Locusts’ playful answer to “November Rain.”
The urgency is cast across The Red Angel – produced by Keane and Ethan Dussault, and Recorded and mixed by Ethan Dussault at New Alliance Studio in Somerville, MA – at every fuzzed-out riff or thunderous drum hit. But the impulses are what ties it all together.
“It feels great, and I love that it's the culmination of getting a few of our singles from the EP out into the world,” says Keane. “The non-single tracks [“Donna Summer” and “Wave Out Sunkiss”] are what would have been the opener and the closer of the bigger original album Red Angel would have been, so there's a nice completeness to this season.”
That season began last fall with “Buck Dharma’s Eyes,” a scratchy, stomp-along first single that both Keane and Young count as a personal highlight on the record. “I think it's maybe the catchiest melody I've ever written and I was so afraid of fucking it up!” Keane admits.
From there, a trio of monthly singles began shaping The Red Angel like one giant, ragged puzzle, its sound so huge it could connect Keane’s Massachusetts with Young’s Arizona like an aural bridge rocketing across the flyover states. December’s punchy and rich “To Art Bell” raised a glass to the famed Coast To Coast host and AM Radio conspiracy icon; January’s riff-crazy “Soo All The Way” raised a glass to the people of the international border towns of Sault Ste. Marie; and February’s relentless “Love Goes Down The Drain” acted as a love letter to those done with love.
Meanwhile, rounding out the record, “Wave Out Sunkiss” is a call to action and howl, a spiritual brother to Canyons and Locusts’ first-ever single "Arms On The Table," and "Donna Summer" takes inspiration from the Dorchester disco icon with its big sound and ultimately hopeful demeanor. “It's not a pop song,” Keane warns. “I'm not sure exactly what it is, actually. But I love it too.”
But on more than one occasion, the songs now presented on The Red Angel were born from an instant, whether it was a single take done right or just a feeling that Keane and Young arrived at where they wanted to be creatively. Aided by Dussault’s awareness of where to push and where to pull, and in getting two players to fill a massive room with sound, it’s the dance between the impulse and the urgency that helped craft a relentless, loud, and unapologetic record.
“In a lot of ways our songs are maybe testaments to the true power of real interpersonal connection and love and trust,” Keane notes. We try to capture moments in all of their ragged glory instead of picture perfection.”
And when it was time to name the record, a sudden impulse instantly won out. Dedicating it to Covault, a person Young credits as “very selfless, honest, passionate, and not afraid to take chances… a beautiful soul,” was met with instant approval.
“Amy came up with the EP name, one day she said ‘we should call it Red Angel’ – and it was one of those immediate, no-brainer, absolutely ‘yes’ things. Justine, as she was for so many, was our friend and our champion and I feel like this record has the same emotional energy and urge she responded to from our first record. When she heard demos of a few of these songs, she was her usual incredibly encouraging and supportive self. It's a love letter for her, if not to her. She was one of a kind.”
Media Contact: Please direct press inquiries to Michael Marotta at michael@knyvet.com, and reach Canyons and Locusts directly at canyonsandlocusts@gmail.com.
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Canyons and Locusts are:
Justin Keane: Vocals and guitar
Amy Young: Drums
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‘The Red Angel’ album artwork:
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‘The Red Angel’ production credits:
Produced by Justin Keane and Ethan Dussault
Recorded and mixed by Ethan Dussault at New Alliance Studio, June, August 2023
Mastered by Nick Zampiello at New Alliance East, October 2023
Music and lyrics by Justin Keane, Heavy Fuzz Music/BMI
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Canyons and Locusts short bio:
Canyons and Locusts are a two-piece band featuring Boston’s Justin Keane on vocals and guitar and Phoenix’s Amy Young on drums and backing vocals. Fueled by the chaos of the world and an urgent need to be part of the conversation, the two took the indie rock foundation they built together in previous bands, adding new levels of noise via pervasive, edgy guitar sounds, low and thundery drum beats, and vocals that capture a mix of emotions and power dynamics. A new EP, The Red Angel, dedicated to Red on Red Records’ Justine Covault, is set for release in March 2024, led by a quartet of singles in “Buck Dharma’s Eyes,” “To Art Bell,” “Soo All The Way,” and the Valentine’s Day release “Love Goes Down The Drain.”
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Media praise for Canyons and Locusts:
“Picking up where October’s furious ‘Buck Dharma’s Eyes’ left off, ‘To Art Bell’ is a hazy fever of gritty alt-rock and Midwestern college rock that clocks in at just over two minutes in runtime. And it’s not lost on the band that this chaotic and noisy tune is inspired, in part, by a radio host who’s timbre and cadence helped put listeners at ease.” _The Big Takeover
“‘Soo All The Way’ is a mean motherrocker that easily could have been on an early Sonic Youth or Dinosaur Jr album. Distorted guitars, raw and rough. Sturdy drum hits. Expressive and punchy vocals. DIY rock ‘n’ roll at its razor blade sharpest. Hells bells.” _Turn Up The Volume
“In a flurry of fuzz and ferocious pummeling, Keane and Young are back at it again with barely two minutes of raucous Rawk that ends before it has a chance to get stale. Decidedly a little more chirpier than previous outing ‘To Art Bell’, ‘Soo All The Way’ is a crunchy number with Young laying out some percussive heft as Keane’s growly croon rattles around in your noggin long after the final chords ring out.” _Rock And Roll Fables
"The song [‘To Art Bell’] is a fuzzed out indie rock song that sounds like a sludgier Guided By Voices. It's a fun and upbeat rocker that's a fitting tribute to the radio host. It's the kind of song that's loud and thunderous, but surprisingly catchy.” _If It’s Too Loud
“Canyons and Locusts ram it out in just a little more than two minutes. … Where the previous single ‘To Art Bell’ was a musically varied affair, the duo all but flies out of the bend in the road here [‘Soo All The Way’]. Anyone in the mood for some uncomplicated headbanging knows where to go now.” _WoNo Magazine
“[‘Love Goes Down The Drain’] is a fast paced, no punches thrown tune that shows the band letting their emotions run wild … It could best be described as an anti Valentine’s Day romp with a punk twist.” _Music Box Pete
“Packed with ample doses of throwback punk energy and a sneering-forward delivery, ‘Buck Dharma’s Eyes’ is everything you’d hope alluding to the BOC frontman, and everything you need to push through the artificial. It is an escape from the clean-cut, over-produced nonsense and exists confidently in its attitude. Laced with an energetic fervor, the two-minute single leaves me wanting so much more. But tis the season to be thankful for what we have.” _Nanobot Rock
“When we heard ‘To Art Bell,’ from Boston and Phoenix duo Canyons And Locusts, it felt like a musical awakening. To hear music and melodies orchestrated like they are presented on ‘To Art Bell’ was absolute magic.” _The Whole Kameese
“Canyons and Locusts’ new track ‘Buck Dharma’s Eyes’ brings back memories of the early 2000s. With the gritty guitar and equally gravelly vocal performance, you can imagine this tune introducing the latest coming-of-age blockbuster that will have teens and young adults lining up around the block.” _Indie Band Guru
“‘Buck Dharma’s Eyes’ presents a raw indie rock energy, gritty and live-sounding in its authenticity but mysterious, thoughtful and elusive in its vague though cutting lyrical journey.” _Stereo Stickman
“Canyons and Locusts do a lot with just two instruments and they've had a signature sound since the first single. Their newly released song ‘Buck Dharma’s Eyes’ has that sound. They've managed to keep things interesting with melody and lyric content and that’s the case here. We really want to read into ‘Buck Dharma’s Eyes’ but the lyrics don’t reveal anything specific. The repeated use of ‘amen’ also raises the stakes. The verses when read without the music almost seem like a meditation, a calming. Is the title just a way to get the word ‘dharma’ (cosmic order) into the song? It’s all intriguing.” _Boston Groupie News
“‘Buck Dharma’s Eyes’ initially leads with a fuzzy melodic tempting but soon reveals its garage punk instincts as Keane’s distinctive tones share their emotive contemplation. Already that pop catchiness is fueling the track’s swing though, a listener involving courting simply adding greater potency to its aligning sonic discord and emotive anxiety. As a whole, ‘Buck Dharma’s Eyes’ is a track bound in thick infectiousness, its contagion of noise and melodic fire cast with a similarly organic trespass of enterprise which we for one were very quickly enamoured with.” _The RingMaster Review
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Press Contact: Michael Marotta at michael@knyvet.com
Band Contact: Justin Keane at canyonsandlocusts@gmail.com
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