Look, we get it—just being alive can be exhausting sometimes. Eric Liao gets it too, in a way you probably weren’t expecting if you’ve heard his previous work as Empty Nesters. The Montreal-based artist is getting mentioned in the same breath as Show Me the Body and Full of Hell, when past efforts toed the line between bedroom pop and dreamy shoegaze.
It’s an incredible pivot, and his forthcoming EP seethes with raw emotion, delivering visceral songwriting and hard-charging riffs that grapple with existential questions, typified by lead single ‘Shangri-Nah’, which rages against burnout and strives for clarity of purpose, bringing James Clayton of Clay Pigeon along for a white-knuckle thrill ride through hardcore, psychedelic rock and doom metal, with guttural vocals aplenty.
It’s taken from Deaf Monks, a 7-song EP that burns briefly and brilliantly, sticking the landing with passion and poise. Liao is doing this just because he can, in keeping with the theme of his scorching new single. Also featuring ‘Twinge‘, it’s out Friday July 11th.
