Chicago’s dance-punk, darkwave ensemble BEASTII release their first single ‘Justine’. Their new full-length studio album titled, Follower, comes out on September 6 via Dark Circles Records.
“On a surface level, the album is about chasing and being chased,” explains Jen Dot (aka Jen B. Larson, author of “Hit Girls: Women of Punk in the USA, 1975-1983” and former Swimsuit Addition guitarist and singer). “The title, Follower, has a rich tapestry of meanings, each revealing a different facet of the word. From spying to obsession, chase to consumption, and the pursuit of justice to surrender, the “follower” takes on many roles. It can be an energized hater, a scorned lover, a jealous lurker, a passive appreciator, or enthusiastic supporter.
All the songs on Follower were written, performed, and produced by BEASTII, and recorded and mixed by Chris Lee at the VCR in Chicago, Illinois between January 2023 and March 2024. Lee has recorded hundreds of underground artists in Chicago, including notable acts such as Twin Peaks, Kenny Hoopla, Nnamdi, Show You Suck, Deeper, and Al Scorch.
Of the recording process Lee says “The songs on this album have taken shape in so many different ways. Some were recorded with me on drums playing along with a scratch bass or guitar going DI into headphones live at The VCR, some were created entirely in Garageband by Jen and Jesse and then slowly dubbed over with final parts. Sometimes we brought in MIDI data and re-voiced parts, sometimes we bounced out the original voices and imported them into Logic. We’re using Virtual Drummer parts Jen programmed that I duplicated and split into stems, drum parts Jesse played on my Digitakt, multiple passes of my kit recorded to do things I can’t do with four limbs. It’s just fun throwing all these diverse creative processes into one project. There’s no one right way to let an idea become reality!”
Follower:
- Justine
- The Limit
- Cosmic Bummer
- Spilt Milk
- Evil Eye
- Double-Sided Cig
- Sell Out
- Butch Beach
- Ghost Follower
- Subliminal
- Into the Ground
- Trusted Mystik
- Be Sweet
