Tanlines, the duo of Eric Emm and Jesse Cohen, have announced their first LP in eight years. It’s called The Big Mess, and it will be released on May 19 via Merge. Today, they’ve shared a video for the lead single ‘Outer Banks’, which you can check out below, along with the album artwork and tracklist.
“This song is about being a perfectionist. When I was younger, I thought that being called that was a compliment,” Emm explained in a statement. “But I’ve come to realize it’s actually a liability. This is especially true in any kind of partnership. Making concessions, adjustments and letting things go are all components of a successful endeavor.”
Of the video, Cohen added: “I’ve spent the last few years in work environments where the deck seems to have become the primary communication tool for young professionals. I wanted to find a way to use that language to tell the story of our song, ‘Outer Banks.’ Hopefully this video resonates and tickles anyone who has sat through the kind of presentation at work where someone in a box on the screen just reads the slides out loud. Welcome to Tanlines’ hybrid work era!”
The Big Mess started coming together after Emm and his family moved from Brooklyn to rural Connecticut, while Cohen launched a marketing career and a podcast. “I spent years figuring out in my mind, ‘What is my musical life going to look like?’” Emm said. “I just kept writing.”
In January 2022, Cohen joined Emm at his Connecticut studio to record The Big Mess alongside Patrick Ford. Emm commented, “I think of these songs as Rothko paintings: They’re big and they’re bold and they’re seemingly straightforward, but they have a lot of depth and they engage with you and make you feel something.”
The Big Mess Cover Artwork:
The Big Mess Tracklist:
1. The Big Mess
2. Outer Banks
3. New Reality
4. Burns Effect
5. Clouds
6. Unreal
7. Arm’s Length Away
8. Endless Love
9. Speed
10. Hold On
11. The Age of Innocence
