Nightlands, the solo project of The War on Drugs bassist Dave Hartley, has announced his new album Moonshine (due out 7/15 on Western Vinyl) with a beautiful, hazy title track. Primarily built around Hartley’s trembling vocals, the song is a gauzy piece of dream-pop that finds Hartley singing a version of “America the Beautiful” that dovetails into his own thoughts of the hypocrisy of the American dream. It’s an elegant but simple song that reminds me of early Beach House if they were even more chilled out, and it’s an intoxicating first listen to what will likely be a very beautiful album. Hartley shared the following about the album, which finds him collaborating with TWOD bandmates Robbie Bennet and Anthony Lamarca —
“This was never intended to be an overtly political record,” he admits. “I have so many friends who are able to process the frustration of current events gracefully or with wisdom or in a nuanced way, but I often find myself just consumed with anger about it all. I decided to just let that come out, and it manifested itself lyrically.”
Watch the video for “Moonshine” below, and preorder the album here.