Kevin Devine has just announced We Are Who We’ve Always Been, a stripped down reimagining of his 2016 release Instigator. The album was produced by longterm collaborator Chris Bracco and features guest performances from Swivs, The Mynabirdsand Half Waif.
Devine has also premiered the first track from the record “I Was Alive Back Then” featuring Half Waif.
We Are Who We’ve Always Been is set to be released on October 20th via Procrastinate! Music Traitors and Triple Crown Records. Pre-orders for the album are available now via Procrastinate!.
Kevin Devine has also announced two shows in Brooklyn, NY in December. The first show, on 12/14 at The Bell House will feature Kevin Devine playing We Are Who We’ve Always Been and his 2003 record Make The Clocks Move. The second show, on 12/16 at Music Hall Of Williamsburg, will feature Kevin Devine & The Goddamn Band playing Instigator in full, as well as his 2006 album Put Your Ghost To Rest. Both shows will feature TBA special guests. Tickets are available now.
These are Kevin’s only currently scheduled solo shows following his recent announcement that he’d be joining Brand New as a touring member for the foreseeable future. More information and a full list of dates can be found below.
“Part according to plan & part in reaction to circumstances beyond our control blowing that plan up, I ended up doing nearly as much touring solo as we did full-band on Instigator, which, in its original presentation, was mostly a pretty full-on fuzzy power-pop record. It’s always fun & challenging figuring out ways to present the songs in each format so they feel equally compelling; with Instigator, I found the songs really felt like they made sense both ways, and ended up demanding an alternate presentation to highlight different strengths. It was, as always, a treat tackling that alongside Chris Bracco, my longest-standing creative collaborator, responsible here for production, mixing, and art design.
For the three songs that were already acoustic in presentation, we decided to build around piano/synth/other voices, and bring in three excellent friends way more qualified than I am to do that credibly. Will Schalda, who performs as Swivs and plays with Charles Bradley & Budos Band, handled “Freddie Gray Blues;” Laura Burhenn, who plays as the Mynabirds and has toured as a member of Bright Eyes & The Postal Service, transformed “No One Says You Have To;” and Nandi Rose Plunkett, who plays as Half Waif & is a member of Pinegrove, opened up “I Was Alive Back Then.” They all absolutely and uniquely killed it.
I think the record stands as its own document, has its own voice, and completes the full story of these songs. I hope you feel the same.” – Kevin Devine
Tour Dates:
09/23 – Philadelphia, PA – Xfinity Live!
10/07 – Lowell, MA – Zorba’s Music Hall^
12/14 – Brooklyn, NY – The Bell House*
12/16 – Brooklyn, NY – Music Hall Of Williamsburg%
! = w/ Taking Back Sunday
^ = A Celebration Of Jack Kerouac
* = Kevin Devine plays We Are Who We’ve Always Been and Make The Clocks Move
% = Kevin Devine & The Goddamn Band play Instigator and Put Your Ghost To Rest