Beach Fossils

Beach Fossils present “Dare Me,” the new single/video from their forthcoming album, Bunny, out June 2nd on Bayonet. Following lead single “Don't Fade Away,” “one of Beach Fossils’ sharpest compositions” (Paste) with “an earworm of a chorus that won’t soon be forgotten” (Consequence), “Dare Me” broadens Beach Fossils’ palette of irresistible tracks. Beach Fossils have steadily earned their stature as one of the most definitive and enduring bands of the last decade which is showcased in the songwriting prowess on full display here. “Went to a party // Had to break up the fight // Then we took off // ‘Cause it fucked up our night,” frontman Dustin Payseur sings in an ever-cool intonation. The accompanying music video, directed by Kevin Clark, fittingly depicts a raucous late-night house party.

“‘Dare Me’ is a song about conflict, friendship and the intoxication of new love,” says Payseur. “Willing to let yourself be stupid, vulnerable, pissed off and forgiving.”

Watch Beach Fossils’ “Dare Me” Video

“Sharpening their fidelity and dream-pop instincts on every successive release” (INTERVIEW), Bunny continues the stunning evolution of Beach Fossils’ sound, pulling elements from the jangly melancholy of What a Pleasure EP (2011), the gritty, post-punk inspired tracks from Clash the Truth (2013), and the lush arrangements of Somersault (2017). Payseur remarks that in creating this album, a bigger emphasis was made for stronger attunement to pop structure: “This is the first record where I’ve consciously thought about writing a chorus.”  Throughout, he’s joined by core band members Tommy Davidson (guitar), Jack Doyle Smith (bass), and Anton Hochheim (drums).

Bunny represents strength through vulnerability. From poignant words about a family member’s cancer battle and the joy of being a father, to small, but meaningful moments with friends, Bunny is the band’s most vivid, grounded and personal work to date. The songs reflect on depression, love, adventure, loss, mistakes, New York City, friendships coming and going — a mélange of granular pieces in the process of continuing to find yourself. Payseur’s collage-like lyrics communicate through tone and mood as much as narrative; New York poets like Frank O’Hara, Ted Berrigan, and Anne Waldman were on his desk, as was the Tao Te Ching.

Beach Fossils will tour Australia with Modest Mouse, Slowdive, and others next month before returning to the states for their first U.S. show of 2023. A full list of dates is below with more to be announced soon.