Sleigh Bells – comprised of producer/guitarist Derek Miller and singer Alexis Krauss – will be releasing their incredible new album, Texis, this Friday, September 10, 2021 on Mom + Pop Music. A new track from the album, entitled “True Seekers,” has been released today. The song is a classic Sleigh Bells slow burn in the same vein as much-loved songs like “Rill Rill,” “End Of The Line,” and “I Can Only Stare,” and one of the best songs in the band’s arsenal. “True Seekers” follows the release of lead single “Locust Laced” and album track “Justine Go Genesis” in anticipation of the record’s full release this week.
It’s been twelve years since Sleigh Bells burst into the public consciousness, emerging fully-formed from tiny New York City venues onto the global stage with a sound entirely their own. Over four incredible full-length albums and one EP, Miller and Krauss have shaken up independent music; the duo were among the first to fully integrate the now-ubiquitous sounds of pop radio and hip-hop into their guitar-based melodies. They’ve opened for everyone from LCD Soundsystem and Hot Chip to the Pixies and Weezer. They’ve played Saturday Night Live and Later…with Jools Holland. Their sound has been borrowed by countless pop producers looking to give their tracks some much-needed edge. They’ve been championed by everyone from Spike Jonze to Reed Morano to Sofia Coppola, their songs providing the perfect aural complement to films and TV shows around the world. And now – they’re releasing a brand new collection of music via a new partnership with longtime label partner Mom + Pop Music.
Their new album, Texis, is the sound of the duo letting go of hang-ups and inhibitions and allowing themselves to embrace the sort of loud, colorful, genre-melting music only they could make. “We stopped worrying about whether or not we’re in or out of our comfort zone, or if we were being repetitive or formulaic,” says Derek Miller. After pushing themselves to sound less obviously “Sleigh Bells” on their 2017 EP Kid Kruschev, he found he’d started to reject a lot of his best creative impulses. On Texis, the duo decided to simply push the first domino and see what would happen, chasing down whatever excitement and inspiration followed; the resulting album is pure fireworks, full of the best songs Sleigh Bells have ever written and recorded. Miller and Krauss didn’t go “back to basics” by emulating the sound of their landmark debut Treats, but they did reconnect with that record’s brash, speaker-rattling energy. Texis is an album that’s the most fully actualized version of the band, merging the more refined pop craft and deeper emotional palette of their 2016 album Jessica Rabbit with the dopamine-blasting bangers of their earlier days.
One of the band’s goals in writing Texis was to infuse even the most abrasive and full-blast songs with something that made the music feel “nourishing” to them. “The thing I’m most attracted to is the juxtaposition of happy and sad, melancholy and hope,” says Miller. “A lot of this is about trying to hold on to a shred of optimism through sheer force of will, and I hope this music can give people some joyful energy and confidence.”
Pre-order Sleigh Bells Texis here. The digital album will be available September 10, 2021. CDs will ship from Sleigh Bells’ webstore on or around September 10th, and will be in stores October 8th, 2021. Vinyl will ship on or around February 18, 2022.
Sleigh Bells will be touring in Fall 2021 and Winter 2022 in support of Texis; Kills Birds will be opening on the Fall dates. Tour dates are below.
Sleigh Bells tour dates:
2021 —
9/9 – New York, NY – Webster Hall (sold out)
10/5 – Raleigh, NC – Lincoln Theatre
10/6 – Richmond, VA – The Broadberry
10/8 – Nashville, TN – Mercy Lounge
10/9 – Charlotte, NC – The Underground
10/10 – Atlanta, GA – Center Stage Theater
10/12 – Houston, TX – Warehouse Live
10/13 – Austin, TX – Mohawk
10/15 – Dallas, TX – Granada Theater
10/17 – Denver, CO – Gothic Theatre
10/18 – Salt Lake City, UT – Metro Music Hall
10/20 – Phoenix, AZ – Crescent Ballroom
10/21 – Los Angeles, CA – Teragram Ballroom
10/23 – Oakland, CA – The New Parish
10/26 – Portland, OR – Wonder Ballroom
10/27 – Vancouver, BC – Venue Nightclub
10/28 – Seattle, WA – The Showbox
2022 —
2/8 – Columbus, OH – Newport Music Hall
2/9 – Cincinnati, OH – The Ballroom at Taft Theatre