We can’t say enough about how we love Cathedral Ceilings. Even though it just came out on September 5, we’ve been rocking out to La La La…Whatever all summer long, champing at the bit to get it to you. The followup to the band’s 2022 debut Summer of Misguided Dynamite, the album is more lightspeed violent pop, just like we like it.
The record is off to a great start, too, getting a bunch of press and radio play. It’s been great fun getting it all out there, and you can look forward to some Northeast and Midwest dates going into the Fall. But for now, you can buy the LP on 180-gram, fire-colored vinyl, black vinyl, compact disc, or the digital format of your choice, at our Bandcamp store.
Out now – “Hoping That You’re Lonely” by Sleepyhead
The last new music we’re releasing before DromFest is “Hoping That You’re Lonely,” by the Boston indie pop band Sleepyhead. This one has been a long time coming (and is the band’s first vinyl 7″ since 1995), as we have been planning this one out for nearly a year.
We first heard Sleepyhead on the excellent Pop Narcotic compilation “Why Do You Think They Call it Pop,” released in 1994 – a compilation we love so much that we commissioned an artist to include it on the cover of our 20th Anniversary compilation. It’s truly a thrill to be working with them, and this 7″ is a precursor to a full-length we are planning for 2025.
You can check out the single here.
Out Now – “Free People” by Cell
It’s with unbelievable excitement and pride that we share with you a BRAND NEW TRACK by the amazing NYC band CELL.
Cell were a New York-based rock band that formed in 1990 and released two full-length LPs and several singles and EPs on the DGC subsidiary of Geffen Records, along with a single on the Ecstatic Peace label. Their two full-lengths, Slo-Blo and Living Room, are legit classics of the era, but the label gave up on them and the band split up, leaving behind a small catalog but a massive legacy.
What began as a plan to play just two reunion shows – our DromFest and a second show on September 3 at the Mercury Lounge – added an interesting wrinkle, as members of the band began discussing making a new recording of “Free People,” a lost song that was being worked on during the band’s final tour in the early 1990s. Sadly, the band broke up before the song could ever be recorded.
As a way of helping promote their upcoming shows, the band members began discussing the possibility of recording this song, and within weeks it became a reality. We were beyond ecstatic when the band told us about it, and asked us if we could release it on Dromedary.
Of COURSE we can release it on Dromedary.
And with that, we’re proud to unveil to you the soulful melodies and bluesy noise of “Free People.”
As for what’s next from the band, well, this is it. This song, and the two upcoming live performances – Sunday, September 1 at DromFest, and September 3 at the Mercury Lounge in NYC.
Preorder Now – “La La La…Whatever”
The latest LP from Cathedral Ceilings, La La La…Whatever, is available for preorder now, with a release date of September 6.
The band’s second LP, recorded and co-produced by Tom Beaujour (Nada Surf, Aeon Station), is an album that presents a dozen hot, guitar-driven rock numbers in quick succession, with the same intensity as their growing word-of-mouth live shows will attest. The band specializes in standard, no-frills violent pop, just like we like it here at Dromedary.
The album’s lead singles, “My CEO” and “Bill Berry,” are both available now for download. The album will be available on limited-edition flaming red and orange 180-gram vinyl, 180-gram audiophile black vinyl, limited edition compact disc and, of course, the digital format of your choice. And don’t forget to catch the band at DromFest on September 1.
CONSIDER BUYING A VIP PASS
If you’re coming from out of town for DromFest, here’s why we hope you’ll buy a VIP pass.
The picturesque Hudson Valley is the kind of place where you’ll never run out of things to do outdoors, and its arts and music communities are filled with talented, creative people who make beautiful things. It’s amazing, peaceful place to visit and spend the weekend.
It is a privilege to host an event like DromFest in a place that’s so beautiful, and to have so many excellent friends helping us make it happen.
But when the festival is over and everyone goes home with a weekend of memories, there are some realities that we live with here, and one of them is the issue of food insecurity. In the Mid-Hudson Valley, about 8% of households are food insecure, and in Greene County, where DromFest is being held, the number is double that, according to the state Department of Health. It’s a crisis, and it’s not always visible to out-of-town folks enjoying the stunning scenery and wonderful food, wine, beer, art and music.
The DromFest lineup is pretty special. It’s a great opportunity to see some amazing bands in an intimate space for a very affordable price. We are thrilled to share such a great lineup – in such a beautiful setting – with our out-of-town friends who are planning to spend a weekend.
But we’re also hoping that our out-of-town friends will give a little back by purchasing a VIP pass. The difference is just $20 per ticket, you’ll get a free Dromedary CD sampler and a Sleepyhead 7″, and for every VIP pass sold, we will make a $10 donation to the Community Action of Greene County Food Pantry.
Just Added: Babe the Blue OX
We’ve known Babe for years. And yet none of us have ever met.
They’ve been around a couple of years longer than we have; over the years, a few Dromedary bands have shared the stage with them, and I think we first exchanged letters – actual LETTERS because we’re fucking old as dirt – in the 90s when we put out the Mommyheads’ Flying Suit LP. Over the years, Tim and I have exchanged periodic emails – sometimes years apart. Whenever I got an email from Tim, it always made me happy to know that Babe were still out there, making ridiculous, crazy, experimental, unique music.
They’ve got a new album out called What About Today? (all of Babe’s albums are named after Barbra Streisand albums, this one after the 1969 LP that was, up until that point, her poorest performance on the charts). News of the album caused us to reconnect, another of our periodic exchanges of hellos, and this one led to a quick discussion of DromFest, the discovery that their new album was actually recorded in Catskill (where DromFest is being held), and an agreement to add the mighty Babe the Blue OX to the DromFest lineup.
The band will be playing Sunday afternoon, and you should absolutely make it a point to be there.