The Drums & Jonny Pierce Release Two-Song Single
Today, Jonny Pierce of The Drums has reached into the band’s musical vault to release two songs originally recorded in 2012.
Watch the glitch-filled black and white music video for “I Didn’t Realize” HERE, also filmed in 2012.
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“It’s easy to write a song when you’re in the afterglow of an epiphany,” Pierce said of the themes behind “I Didn’t Realize”. “I was coming out of a chapter of deep grief after a band mate who I had loved deeply and trusted deeply abandoned me for some sort of hypothetical greener pasture … This song is about the realization that putting someone else’s needs above your own can lead to devastating results. It was also a realization that I was so green when this band started and because of an abusive childhood, I was eager to please, eager to have family, eager for approval. There were and still are people that look to leach off people whose greatest challenge is to love themselves. It still happens today, but I’m more sensitive and aware when it starts happening. I didn’t realize, but now I do.”
“It all ends today / I don’t feel anymore” Pierce croons with finality over a sparse electronic beat on “You Lied”, his second new track. Listen to the song HERE.
“This is the companion piece to “I Didn’t Realize”,” Pierce explained. “I was calling out an ex-band member on saying something very powerful to me. Something that made me feel I needed him and couldn’t find success or happiness without him … He was very clever and while I often saw signs of that, I let myself ignore the warnings. I felt desperate, he knew it, and so he pounced. When he disappeared, I was blindsided. Everything he said on that balcony that summer night in Brooklyn was a lie. Years later, I have healed and am now in a place of greater understanding, but if I let myself, it’s still so easy to feel the pain of that violent chapter of abandonment.”
The Drums released their fifth album Brutalism this past spring, which was declared Pierce’s “most honest” record yet via Pitchfork. Following a painful divorce and an incredibly difficult stint living solely in Los Angeles, Pierce decided it was time to face his demons, and the making of Brutalism was a part of that process. The Drums will continue to tour in support of Brutalism through the rest of this year, including international dates in Mexico, China, Malaysia and more. They will also headline five shows throughout California this November. All upcoming tour dates are listed below.
TOUR DATES
10/16 – Mexico City, Mexico – El Plaza Condesa
10/18 – Guadalajara, Mexico – Tecate Coordenada
10/19 – Monterrey, Mexico – Tecate Live Out
11/5 – Fresno, CA – Strummer’s
11/16 – Santa Cruz, CA – Catalyst
11/7 – San Luis Obispo, CA – Fremont Theater
11/8 – Santa Barbara, CA – SOhO Restaurant and Music Club
11/10 – Pico Rivera, CA – Pico Rivera Sports Arena
11/13 – Shenzhen, China – HOU LIVE
11/14 – Shanghai, China – MAO Livehouse
11/15 – Beijing, China - 北京 糖果LIVE三层
11/17 – Bangkok, Thailand – Maho Rasop Festival
11/23 – Jakarta, Indonesia – Lokatara Music Festival
11/24 – Rumah Kuala Bok, Malaysia