Over the past few months, psych rockers Dr. Dog have been sharing photos and video from studio sessions through social media. After teasing fans with a song snippet on Friday, they have announced a forthcoming album entitled, Critical Equation. It’s their first proper full-length of new material in five years and is out April 27th through Thirty Tigers.
The LP is Dr. Dog’s first project helmed by an outside producer. They worked with Gus Seyffert (Bedouine, Michael Kiwanuka) in an effort to evolve their sound. “We’d been touring and making records for our entire adult lives, and I think we just needed to take a step back,” bassist and singer Toby Leaman shared through a press statement. “It was important for all of us to figure out if we were actually doing what we wanted to be doing, or if we were just letting momentum carry us down this path we’d always been on.”
“This band has been at work a long time and this record is about a concerted effort to push ourselves to grow with courage and confidence built upon our history together,” he added. “That ends up being a renewed testimony of love for ourselves, each other, the work we do together, and the willingness to approach something you know so well with a beginners innocence.”
As a preview of the new release, Dr. Dog have shared the opening track, “Listening In”. The song features noodling guitars, a thumping bass drum, and an infusion of synths. The lovelorn lyrics include lines like, “And it’s been a long, lonely winter/ I just want you back/ And I know I saw you up there in the window/ And some shadows.”
Hear it below.
Dr. Dog’s most recent album was 2016’s Abandoned Mansion.
Critical Equation Artwork:
Critical Equation Tracklist:
01. Listening In
02. Go Out Fighting
03. Buzzing In The Light
04. Virginia Please
05. Critical Equation
06. True Love
07. Heart Killer
08. Night
09. Under The Wheels
10. Coming Out Of The Darkness
Dr. Dog will also embark on their first tour in two years to support Critical Equation. The cross-country US trek kicks off at the McDowell Mountain Music Festival in Phoenix on March 2nd and continues through the end of June. Tickets go on sale on Friday, January 19th.
Check out the complete itinerary below.
Dr. Dog 2018 Tour Dates:
03/02 – Phoenix, AZ @ McDowell Mountain Music Festival
04/06 – Louisville, KY @ Mercury Ballroom
04/07 – Knoxville, TN @ Rhythm N’ Blooms Festival
04/08 – Columbia, MO @ The Blue Note
04/09 – Fayetteville, AR @ George’s Majestic Lounge
04/10 – Oxford, MS @ The Lyric
04/12 – Mobile, AL @ Soul Kitchen
04/13 – Orlando, FL @ The Plaza Live
04/14 – Ft. Lauderdale, FL @ The Culture Room
04/15 – Ponte Vedra Beach, FL @ Ponte Vedra Concert Hall
04/17 – Charleston, SC @ Music Farm
04/18 – Carrboro, NC @ Cat’s Cradle
04/19 – Richmond, VA @ The National
04/20 – Charlottesville, VA @ Jefferson Theater
05/02 – Boston, MA @ House of Blues
05/04 – Detroit, MI @ Majestic Theatre
05/05 – Chicago, IL @ Riviera Theatre
05/06 – St. Paul, MN @ Palace Theatre
05/08 – Milwaukee, WI @ Turner Hall Ballroom
05/10 – Tulsa, OK @ Cain’s Ballroom
05/11 – Dallas, TX @ Granada Theater
05/12 – Austin, TX @ Moody Theater
05/13 – Houston, TX @ White Oak Music Hall
05/14 – San Antonio, TX @ The Rustic
05/16 – New Orleans, LA @ Joy Theater
05/17 – Birmingham, AL @ Iron City
05/18 – Atlanta, GA @ Tabernacle
05/19 – Black Mountain, NC @ Pisgah Brewing Co.
06/01 – Santa Ana, CA @ The Observatory
06/02 – San Diego, CA @ Observatory North Park
06/05 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Theatre at Ace Hotel
06/07 – Oakland, CA @ Fox Theater
06/08 – Portland, OR @ Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall
06/09 – Seattle, WA @ The Moore Theatre
06/11 – Salt Lake City, UT @ The Depot
06/13 – Denver, CO @ Ogden Theatre
06/14 – Denver, CO @ Ogden Theatre
06/16 – Indianapolis, IN @ Egyptian Room at Old National Centre
06/17 – Pittsburgh, PA @ Stage AE
06/19 – Brooklyn, NY @ Brooklyn Steel
06/20 – Brooklyn, NY @ Brooklyn Steel
06/22 – Vienna, VA @ Wolf Trap
06/23 – Philadelphia, PA @ Festival Pier at Penn’s Landing