Rose City Band — the Pacific Northwest-based project helmed by Ripley Johnson (Wooden Shjips, Moon Duo) — have announced their fifth studio album, previewed by lead single "Lights on the Way," which they've shared alongside plans for a 2025 North American tour with a lone Canadian stop in Vancouver.
Sol y Sombra is due January 24 through Thrill Jockey. It follows last year's Garden Party, 2021's Earth Trip, 2020's Summerlong and the group's self-titled 2019 debut. With its title translating to "Sun and Shadow," the LP was inspired by Johnson's love of private press records from the mid- to late-'70s.
"With Rose City Band, I'm generally trying to make uplifting music, good time music," Johnson explained of the outfit, rounded out by Barry Walker on pedal steel, Paul Hasenberg on keyboards and John Jeffrey on drums. "This time I couldn't avoid the shadow being more of a presence. There's no getting away from it. The shadow is always there. So, I left it in."
That being said, the featherlight first single, "Lights on the Way," certainly falls more on the sunshine-y side of things. Give it a listen below, where you'll also find the album tracklist and Rose City Band's 2025 North American tour itinerary — which, as aforementioned, included a single Canadian concert at Vancouver's Fox Cabaret on February 21.
Sol y Sombra:
1. Lights on the Way
2. Open Roads
3. Rolling Gold
4. Evergreen
5. Sunlight Daze
6. Radio Song
7. Seeds of Light
8. La Mesa
9. Wheels
10. The Walls
Rose City Band 2025 Tour Dates:
02/20 Seattle, WA - The Crocodile
02/21 Vancouver, BC - Fox Cabaret
02/23 Portland, OR - Mississippi Studios
03/05 Arcata, CA - Miniplex
03/06 San Francisco, CA - The Chapel
03/07 Los Angeles, CA - Lodge Room
03/08 San Diego, CA - Soda Bar
03/09 Pioneertown, CA - Pappy & Harriet's
03/10 Phoenix, AZ - Valley Bar
03/11 Albuquerque, NM - Sister
03/13 Denver, CO - Globe Hall
03/14 Salt Lake City, UT - Urban Lounge
03/15 Boise, ID - Neurolux