The question marks above don’t appear because we’re unsure if the band is actually called Stern (it is, named for primary personality and Brooklyn musician Chuck Stern, onetime member of the defunct Time of Orchids) or that the song is actually called “Bone Turquoise” (it is), but mostly because we’re not entirely sure what is going on with this music.
The strange, aqueous nature of the music that Stern offers on its new record (Bone Turquoise, to be released on August 7 by New Atlantis Records) becomes a lot less unexpected when you realize that the band includes Toby Driver, the scary genius behind Maudlin of the Well and Kayo Dot, as well as Kayo Dot co-conspirators Keith Abrams and Tim Byrnes. The album is full of pop-like tunes, all hip-checked sideways and left to melt in the summer sun.
Check out “Bone Turquoise” here at the Deciblog, and keep an eye out for the full album one month from today!
For more Stern, check out previous releases at the band’s Bandcamp page, and head over to the New Atlantis Records Bandcamp page to preorder Bone Turquoise.