Built from a foundation of live beats, bass guitar, and vocals (with the occasional Casio or harmonium), Nice Boat’s songs are lean without feeling sparse, playful without sacrificing emotional weight. Something one might have heard during The Smell ‘s golden age in Los Angeles. “We try not to think in terms of genre and instead focus on what sounds feel right in a visceral way… and that fits within our minimal instrumentation setup,” Mike Thrasher says.

That spirit runs through their debut album, I DON’T HAVE THE BANDWIDTH, which was written, recorded, engineered, and produced entirely by the band in their two garages. The album is out September 25 via Slouch Records.

Now, they share the motorik album opening single and video for ‘Sick.’ Clocking in at a lean 2:03, the track perfectly distills the Nice Boat sound that’s bold, addictive, and over far too quickly.

On the track, Thrasher shares: “This was the first song we wrote together. Dylan sent over some amazing, interesting lyrics with the original title of ‘Gaslight’ before it was changed to ‘SICK.’ I immediately started hearing the chorus in my head ‘the sicker you get, the better I feel’ over and over… It all happened very quickly, recording it at the same time it was written.”

Dylan Silver elaborates: “The lyrics were sparked by a real person from a complicated past, but the feelings reach further than that. I think we can all relate to those fleeting, flickering moments when the thought of someone whose hurt us or hurt someone we love crosses our minds and the idea of them getting hurt doesn’t feel all that wrong. In fact, it feels kinda great.”

I DON’T HAVE THE BANDWIDTH:

1. Sick
2. Do Something
3. I’m Not Sure
4. Defending Space
5. What Ifs
6. AI (H)
7. Sweet Ellie
8. Uhoh
9. Walk
10. Everybody’s Bored