The C.I.A. has shared their second unhinged, biting new single “Inhale Exhale” today. Their forthcoming album, Surgery Channel, is ripe with straightforward conviction. The trio made up of Denée & Ty Segall and Emmett Kelly have constructed a world where everything is piercing and pinpointed. Every word brings confrontation – The C.I.A. makes you question what could be happening here…or what they’re after. 

Denée (vocals, lyrics) is both haunting and seducing us at once with her voice over precise sonics, amplified by the suspense of tick-tocking drum machine beats. Ty (bass, percussion, backup vocals) and Emmett (bass, synth, backup vocals) paint a jarring and dissonant landscape behind Denée’s story.  Words are rhythm at The C.I.A.

Surgery Channel is an astute observation and blunt critique. Both inward and outward. It is an exploration into how harshly intimate that process can be. The album was written in 2021 and was recorded by Mike Kriebel at Segall’s own Harmonizer Studios. The album sees its release January 20, 2023, via In The Red on vinyl and across all digital platforms. 

Photo Courtesy: Joshua Erkman