Three years after issuing their debut LP Fake History, Los Angeles post-hardcore crew letlive. have announced their return. The outfit's next LP is titled The Blackest Beautiful, and it drops July 9 through Epitaph.
A press release notes that the LP features 11 "politically, socially and personally conscious songs" that home in on "the tragic costs of poisonous zeal" ("The Priest and Used Cars"), rocky relationships ("Virgin Dirt") and more. You can sample "New Noise"-styled album opener "Banshee (Ghost Frame)" in a newly premiered video down below.
"This song explores the tragic humour in entertainment as an industry as opposed to an art," vocalist Jason Aalon Butler said of the song in a statement. "Sonically this track was a pretty suitable representation of the record's sonic spectrum. We also employed some elements of groove that we have always been fans of."
The album was produced by the band, with the assistance of Kit Walters, and was mixed by Stephen George (Mary J. Blige, Michael Jackson). While the band are influenced by Rage Against the Machine, Deftones and At the Drive-In, this latest song cycle apparently also diffused touches of metal, jazz and R&B into the mix.
"The vibe developed on its own as we wrote it," Butler added. "While we certainly indulged particular tastes, stylistically, as individuals, we made sure that the product culminated as something we could all enjoy. Essentially we all got to explore elements we had always wanted to and somehow found a way to marry them tastefully on one album."
Letlive. will support The Blackest Beautiful this summer on the Vans Warped Tour, which hits Toronto's Molson Amphitheatre on July 5. You can see the rest of the dates down below.
The Blackest Beautiful:
1. Banshee (Ghost Fame)
2. Empty Elvis
3. White America's Beautiful Black Market
4. Dreamer's Disease
5. That Fear Fever
6. Virgin Dirt
7. Younger
8. The Dope Beat
9. The Priest And Used Cars
10. Pheromone Cvlt
11. 27 Club
Tour dates:
6/15 Seattle, WA - White River Amphitheater
6/16 Portland, OR - Portland Expo Center Parking Lot
6/19 San Diego, CA - Sleep Train Amphitheatre
6/20 Pomona, CA - Pomona Fairplex
6/21 Pomona, CA - Pomona Fairplex
6/22 Mountain View, CA - Shoreline Amphitheatre
6/23 Ventura, CA - Seaside Park
6/26 Las Cruces, NM - N.M.S.U. Practice Field
6/27 Mesa, AZ - Quail Run Park
6/28 Las Vegas, NV - Silverton Casino Parking Lot
6/29 Salt Lake City, UT - Utah State Fairpark
6/30 Denver, CO - Sports Authority Field at Mile High
7/3 Indianapolis, IN - Klipsch Music Center
7/5 Toronto, ON - Molson Canadian Amphitheatre
7/6 Buffalo, NY - Darien Lake Performing Arts Center
7/7 Holmdel, NJ - PNC Bank Arts Concert Center
7/9 Virginia Beach, VA - Farm Bureau Live at Virginia Beach
7/10 Washington, D.C. - Merriweather Post Pavilion
7/11 Boston, MA - Comcast Center
7/12 Camden, NJ - Susquehanna Bank Center
7/13 New York, NY - Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum
7/14 Hartford, CT - The Comcast Theatre
7/16 Scranton, PA - Toyota Pavilion
7/17 Pittsburgh, PA - First Niagara Pavilion
7/18 Cleveland, OH - Blossom Music Center
7/19 Detroit, MI - The Palace of Auburn Hills
7/20 Chicago, IL - First Midwest Bank Amphitheatre
7/21 Minneapolis, MN - Canterbury Park
7/23 Kansas City, KS - Cricket Wireless Amphitheater
7/24 St. Louis, MO - Verizon Wireless Amphitheater
7/25 Atlanta, GA - Aaron's Amphitheatre at Lakewood
7/26 Tampa, FL - Vinoy Park
7/27 W. Palm Beach, FL - Cruzan Amphitheatre
7/28 Orlando, FL - Central Florida Fairgrounds
7/29 Charlotte, NC - Charlotte Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre
7/30 Cincinnati, OH - Riverbend Music Center
7/31 Milwaukee, WI - Marcus Amphitheatre
8/2 Dallas, TX - Gexa Energy Pavilion
8/3 San Antonio, TX - AT&T Center
8/4 Houston, TX - Reliant Center Parking Lot
A press release notes that the LP features 11 "politically, socially and personally conscious songs" that home in on "the tragic costs of poisonous zeal" ("The Priest and Used Cars"), rocky relationships ("Virgin Dirt") and more. You can sample "New Noise"-styled album opener "Banshee (Ghost Frame)" in a newly premiered video down below.
"This song explores the tragic humour in entertainment as an industry as opposed to an art," vocalist Jason Aalon Butler said of the song in a statement. "Sonically this track was a pretty suitable representation of the record's sonic spectrum. We also employed some elements of groove that we have always been fans of."
The album was produced by the band, with the assistance of Kit Walters, and was mixed by Stephen George (Mary J. Blige, Michael Jackson). While the band are influenced by Rage Against the Machine, Deftones and At the Drive-In, this latest song cycle apparently also diffused touches of metal, jazz and R&B into the mix.
"The vibe developed on its own as we wrote it," Butler added. "While we certainly indulged particular tastes, stylistically, as individuals, we made sure that the product culminated as something we could all enjoy. Essentially we all got to explore elements we had always wanted to and somehow found a way to marry them tastefully on one album."
Letlive. will support The Blackest Beautiful this summer on the Vans Warped Tour, which hits Toronto's Molson Amphitheatre on July 5. You can see the rest of the dates down below.
The Blackest Beautiful:
1. Banshee (Ghost Fame)
2. Empty Elvis
3. White America's Beautiful Black Market
4. Dreamer's Disease
5. That Fear Fever
6. Virgin Dirt
7. Younger
8. The Dope Beat
9. The Priest And Used Cars
10. Pheromone Cvlt
11. 27 Club
Tour dates:
6/15 Seattle, WA - White River Amphitheater
6/16 Portland, OR - Portland Expo Center Parking Lot
6/19 San Diego, CA - Sleep Train Amphitheatre
6/20 Pomona, CA - Pomona Fairplex
6/21 Pomona, CA - Pomona Fairplex
6/22 Mountain View, CA - Shoreline Amphitheatre
6/23 Ventura, CA - Seaside Park
6/26 Las Cruces, NM - N.M.S.U. Practice Field
6/27 Mesa, AZ - Quail Run Park
6/28 Las Vegas, NV - Silverton Casino Parking Lot
6/29 Salt Lake City, UT - Utah State Fairpark
6/30 Denver, CO - Sports Authority Field at Mile High
7/3 Indianapolis, IN - Klipsch Music Center
7/5 Toronto, ON - Molson Canadian Amphitheatre
7/6 Buffalo, NY - Darien Lake Performing Arts Center
7/7 Holmdel, NJ - PNC Bank Arts Concert Center
7/9 Virginia Beach, VA - Farm Bureau Live at Virginia Beach
7/10 Washington, D.C. - Merriweather Post Pavilion
7/11 Boston, MA - Comcast Center
7/12 Camden, NJ - Susquehanna Bank Center
7/13 New York, NY - Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum
7/14 Hartford, CT - The Comcast Theatre
7/16 Scranton, PA - Toyota Pavilion
7/17 Pittsburgh, PA - First Niagara Pavilion
7/18 Cleveland, OH - Blossom Music Center
7/19 Detroit, MI - The Palace of Auburn Hills
7/20 Chicago, IL - First Midwest Bank Amphitheatre
7/21 Minneapolis, MN - Canterbury Park
7/23 Kansas City, KS - Cricket Wireless Amphitheater
7/24 St. Louis, MO - Verizon Wireless Amphitheater
7/25 Atlanta, GA - Aaron's Amphitheatre at Lakewood
7/26 Tampa, FL - Vinoy Park
7/27 W. Palm Beach, FL - Cruzan Amphitheatre
7/28 Orlando, FL - Central Florida Fairgrounds
7/29 Charlotte, NC - Charlotte Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre
7/30 Cincinnati, OH - Riverbend Music Center
7/31 Milwaukee, WI - Marcus Amphitheatre
8/2 Dallas, TX - Gexa Energy Pavilion
8/3 San Antonio, TX - AT&T Center
8/4 Houston, TX - Reliant Center Parking Lot
