Micachu and the Shapes, the noisy indie-pop band led by Under the Skin composer Mica Levi, are back. They have renamed the group Good Sad Happy Bad — taken from their 2015 full-length of the same name — and have announced a new album called Shades. It’s due out October 16th via French label Textile Records.
Shades is Good Sad Happy Bad’s fifth studio album to date and their first new music since releasing the Taz and May Vids EP in 2016. According to the record label, Good Sad Happy Bad have shuffled their musical duties on the 12-track full-length, with Raisa Khan taking on lead vocals, Levi playing playing guitar and electronics, Marc Pell on drums, and CJ Calderwood contributing vocals, saxophone, and recorder.
To coincide with today’s announcement, Good Sad Happy Bad have also shared the album’s title track. “Shades” opens with lonely saxophone notes and eerie drones in the experimental vein before it makes way for the rest of the song: a straightforward, although slightly off-kilter, indie pop jaunt about putting on shades to block out the troubling absurdities of life. “Pass me my shades/ Because these bright sides are hurting my eyes,” sings Khan, her sunny cadence becoming a literal interpretation of the lyrics against some howling woodwinds.
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In the song’s accompanying music video, directed by Tony Harewood, various images are spliced together and overlapped to create an experimental tone. In one clip, band members can be seen strolling through the woods and taking note of birds flying by. In others, they can be seen eating chips, playing instruments, and stretching their hands up towards the sun to block it. Unsurprisingly, there’s a whole lot of sunglasses in the clip, too. Watch it below.
Pre-orders for Shades are not yet available on the Textile Records’ website, but you can snag a digital download of the lead single via their Bandcamp. In the meantime, check out the album artwork after the jump.
Shades Artwork:
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Shades by Good Sad Happy Bad album artwork cover art
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Shades by Good Sad Happy Bad album artwork cover art
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