Skullcrusher — the indie-folk project of American singer-songwriter Helen Ballentine — has announced her debut album Quiet the Room. It's arriving October 14 through Secretly Canadian, and today, we're getting a preview with new single "Whatever Fits Together."
Ballentine said of the track in a statement:
I wrote "Whatever Fits Together" while reflecting on my past and wondering how I might begin to explain it to someone. I viewed my younger self through a wash of emotions: anger, sadness, pity, confusion, all reaching for a kind of compassion. I tried to capture the contradictions that comprise my past and define who I am now. As I looked back, I saw my life in pieces: some moments blacked out, some extremely vivid, some leading nowhere. Through the song I attempt to piece it together in some non-linear form and accept my disparate story.
The dreamy spectre of a song comes attached to a video from creative director Silken Weinberg, who described the clip as "a nightmare of phantasmagoria, taking inspiration from The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari and one of my favourite silent films, Shoes."
The album at large finds Ballentine merging "the interior world of her songs with the exterior rooms that contained her," reflecting on her childhood in Mount Vernon, NY, while composing its tracks on piano from her Los Angeles apartment. "It's like layers of tracing paper, like someone is trying to make a drawing and you're seeing the entire process," she said.
In addition to the announcement, Ballentine has also detailed North American tour plans. Two Canadian dates fall on the trek: she'll play Montreal's Bar Le Ritz PDB on November 16 and Toronto's Garrison on November 17. Tickets go on sale to the general public on Friday, July 22, at 10 a.m. local time here.
Watch the video for "Whatever Fits Together" below, where you'll find the album's tracklisting and Skullcrusher's upcoming tour schedule.
Quiet the Room:
1. They Quiet the Room
2. Building a Swing
3. Whatever Fits Together
4. Whistle of the Dead
5. Lullaby in February
6. Pass Through Me
7. Could it be the way I look at everything?
8. Outside, playing
9. It's Like a Secret
10. Sticker
11. Window Somewhere
12. (secret instrumental)
13. Quiet the Room
14. You are my House
Skullcrusher 2022 Tour Dates:
07/23 Newport, RI - Newport Folk Festival
07/26 Portsmouth, NH - 3S Artspace
07/27 Allston, MA - O'Briens Pub
07/28 Winooski, VT - Winooski Methodist Church
08/06 Peekskill, NY - The Paramount Hudson Valley Theatre
08/31 London, UK - Omeara
09/02 Salisbury, UK - End of the Road Festival
09/03 Manchester, UK - Manchester Psych Fest
10/17 Los Angeles, CA - Masonic Lodge at Hollywood Forever
11/11 Washington, DC - DC9
11/12 Philadelphia, PA - Johnny Brenda's
11/13 Brooklyn, NY - Elsewhere
11/15 Kingston, NY - Tubby's
11/16 Montreal, QC - Bar Le Ritz PDB
11/17 Toronto, ON - The Garrison
11/19 Bloomington, IN - The Bishop
11/20 Chicago, IL - Sleeping Village
11/30 San Francisco, CA - Cafe Du Nord
12/02 Seattle, WA - Barboza
12/03 Portland, OR - Polaris Hall
Ballentine said of the track in a statement:
I wrote "Whatever Fits Together" while reflecting on my past and wondering how I might begin to explain it to someone. I viewed my younger self through a wash of emotions: anger, sadness, pity, confusion, all reaching for a kind of compassion. I tried to capture the contradictions that comprise my past and define who I am now. As I looked back, I saw my life in pieces: some moments blacked out, some extremely vivid, some leading nowhere. Through the song I attempt to piece it together in some non-linear form and accept my disparate story.
The dreamy spectre of a song comes attached to a video from creative director Silken Weinberg, who described the clip as "a nightmare of phantasmagoria, taking inspiration from The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari and one of my favourite silent films, Shoes."
The album at large finds Ballentine merging "the interior world of her songs with the exterior rooms that contained her," reflecting on her childhood in Mount Vernon, NY, while composing its tracks on piano from her Los Angeles apartment. "It's like layers of tracing paper, like someone is trying to make a drawing and you're seeing the entire process," she said.
In addition to the announcement, Ballentine has also detailed North American tour plans. Two Canadian dates fall on the trek: she'll play Montreal's Bar Le Ritz PDB on November 16 and Toronto's Garrison on November 17. Tickets go on sale to the general public on Friday, July 22, at 10 a.m. local time here.
Watch the video for "Whatever Fits Together" below, where you'll find the album's tracklisting and Skullcrusher's upcoming tour schedule.
Quiet the Room:
1. They Quiet the Room
2. Building a Swing
3. Whatever Fits Together
4. Whistle of the Dead
5. Lullaby in February
6. Pass Through Me
7. Could it be the way I look at everything?
8. Outside, playing
9. It's Like a Secret
10. Sticker
11. Window Somewhere
12. (secret instrumental)
13. Quiet the Room
14. You are my House
Skullcrusher 2022 Tour Dates:
07/23 Newport, RI - Newport Folk Festival
07/26 Portsmouth, NH - 3S Artspace
07/27 Allston, MA - O'Briens Pub
07/28 Winooski, VT - Winooski Methodist Church
08/06 Peekskill, NY - The Paramount Hudson Valley Theatre
08/31 London, UK - Omeara
09/02 Salisbury, UK - End of the Road Festival
09/03 Manchester, UK - Manchester Psych Fest
10/17 Los Angeles, CA - Masonic Lodge at Hollywood Forever
11/11 Washington, DC - DC9
11/12 Philadelphia, PA - Johnny Brenda's
11/13 Brooklyn, NY - Elsewhere
11/15 Kingston, NY - Tubby's
11/16 Montreal, QC - Bar Le Ritz PDB
11/17 Toronto, ON - The Garrison
11/19 Bloomington, IN - The Bishop
11/20 Chicago, IL - Sleeping Village
11/30 San Francisco, CA - Cafe Du Nord
12/02 Seattle, WA - Barboza
12/03 Portland, OR - Polaris Hall
