Say Hi has premiered “Green With Envy,” the third single from the album Caterpillar Centipede, out Friday, September 7th (pre-order). The track follows the album’s two previous singles, “Every Gauge Is On Empty” & “I Just Wanna Go Home,” and can be streamed on all digital platforms HERE.
Songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Eric Elbogen had this to say about the song:
“I had the late ‘70s in mind when making this record and, from a production standpoint, I don’t think there’s a better example on ‘Caterpillar Centipede’ than this one. ‘Riffage’ and ‘anthem’ were the two words going through my mind once the tape was rolling. Lyrically, the theme of envy is such a simple and universal concept, one we’ve all experienced in a thousand mutations at every stage of our lives. It’s a particularly frustrating emotion when the situation feels like it’s of our own doing, especially when there’s nostalgia for a happier time, before we messed up whatever we messed up. I can’t tell you what the narrator of the song is singing about. Perhaps a girl? Perhaps forgotten youth? Perhaps America? Nevertheless, I tried to keep it concise (as usual). I guess all I can hope for is that if it resonates with you, you’ll know that we’ve all been there before and that we’re all in this together.”
Additionally, Say Hi will embark on an intimate five-week living room tour shortly after the release of Caterpillar Centipede, performing stripped down acoustic songs from the entire Say Hi catalog. These will take place in private spaces and each show will be limited to 40-60 people. Tickets for over half of the cities along the upcoming tour are already SOLD OUT but a full listing of available dates can be found below, along with more information HERE.
Say Hi is the brainchild of Eric Elbogen, a Seattle-based musician who has been making quirky indie-rock records since 2002. Despite plans to retire the band in 2017, the overwhelming response to a vinyl Kickstarter ended up convincing him otherwise (the project – debut pressings of four early LPs – was funded within four hours, eventually exceeding quadruple the goal). Energized by the experience and outpouring of emotion by Say Hi fans, Elbogen began writing and recording songs for a new album. However, it wasn’t until he had an unexpected and nostalgia-inducing dream about a centaur named ‘David Bowie’ that he decided to shelve his new experimental-art / sci-fi rap projectWerewolf Diskdrive and revive Say Hi for good.
Say Hi had the following to share about the new album:
“A centaur named David Bowie came to me in a dream. ‘I like the Werewolf Diskdrive record,’ he said, ‘but the world isn’t quite ready for it.’ He was talking about the experimental art project and sci-fi rap album that I’d introduced last year, following the retirement of Say Hi. The centaur looked and sounded like Bowie, so I was listening. ‘The thing is,’ he continued, ‘the universe needs something different right now.’ I could tell, before he even said it, that he was going to try to convince me to revive Say Hi. I stared pensively into the dream-state distance, contemplating the details necessary to make that revival happen. ‘You certain about this?’ I finally asked. ‘Yep,’ the magical creature declared, ‘just be sure you call the new record Caterpillar Centipede, because it needs to worm its way into their hearts in whatever way possible.”
Say Hi will be making appearances in the following markets on his fall, five-week-long living room tour starting in mid-September. Dates below with more info to be released soon.
9/14 – Vancouver BC
9/15 – Portland OR (SOLD OUT)
9/16 – San Francisco CA (SOLD OUT)
9/20 – Los Angeles CA (SOLD OUT)
9/21 – San Diego CA
9/22 – Phoenix AZ
9/23 – Albuquerque NM
9/24 – Dallas TX
9/25 – Austin TX (SOLD OUT)
9/26 – Baton Rouge LA
9/27 – Columbus MS (SOLD OUT)
9/28 – Atlanta GA (SOLD OUT)
9/29 – Raleigh NC
9/30 – Washington DC (SOLD OUT)
10/1 – Philadelphia PA (SOLD OUT)
10/3 – New York NY (SOLD OUT)
10/4 – Boston MA (SOLD OUT)
10/5 – Montreal QC
10/6 – Toronto ON
10/7 – Pittsburgh PA (SOLD OUT)
10/8 – Cleveland OH
10/9 – Detroit MI
10/10 – Nashville TN
10/11 – Indianapolis IN
10/12 – Chicago IL (SOLD OUT)
10/13 – St. Paul MN
10/14 – Kansas City MO
10/15 – Denver CO (SOLD OUT)
10/16 – Salt Lake City UT
10/17 – Missoula MT
10/18 – Seattle WA (SOLD OUT)
10/19 – Seattle WA (SOLD OUT)