Go big or go home. Everything is bigger in Texas and today Toadies celebrate 420 by releasing a new edible in collaboration with Texas High Country. ‘I Come From The Watermelon’ is a watermelon/prickly pear Delta 9, 10 mg THC gummy sold in an engraved Toadies branded collector case. A limited edition bundle is also available including a Toadies shirt not available elsewhere.

On working with Toadies, Texas High Country Founder Andrew Clarkson said  “When I told my team that we should create a fun collaboration with a Texas band, a unanimous ‘Can we reach out to the Toadies?’ swept through the room.  Turns out we were all long-time fans and the idea was a no-brainer.”

For those in the Dallas/Fort Worth area,  Texas High Country will be part of a 4/20 Blowout Pop Up at Thunderbird Station  (3400 Commerce St.) in Dallas from 7pm to midnight, today, April 20th. 

Toadies I Come From The Watermelon – $50

• 30-Pack “I Come From The Watermelon Prickly Pear” THC Gummies
• Engraved BioResin Hard Case (Plant Based, Reusable and Compostable)
• Toadies Texas Cact-Eye Sticker
• Must be 21+ to purchase
• Each gummy contains 10mg THC (Delta-9)
• Naturally derived from hemp, nothing artificial or synthetic
• Vegan and Gluten-Free
• Made in Texas

Toadies Limited Edition Bundle – $85

• Toadies Special Edition 30-Pack Gummies
• Limited Edition Toadies Texas Cact-Eye T-shirt
• Bonus Sticker Pack with two special version stickers

In addition to the edibles, Toadies are re-releasing their first-ever single ‘Dig A Hole/I Hope You Die’ today. Originally only available on self-released cassette thirty years ago, it’s no longer the mythical out-of-print first release. ‘Dig A Hole/I Hope You Die’ has been remixed and remastered by Chris “Frenchie” Smith.  Available on vinyl for the first time, this release features the tracks on one-sided colored 12” vinyl with a Toadies etched logo on the B-side, as well as extensive liner notes.

Toadies drummer Mark Reznicek says, “This tape changed my life! Oh sure, you hear people say this or that record changed their life all the time, but in this case I mean it literally. Tracey Sauerwein (who shortly thereafter became the Toadies guitarist) gave me the Dig A  Hole/Hope You Die cassette and told me the Toadies sounded kinda like the Pixies. I put the tape on, turned up the volume… and had my mind BLOWN! They didn’t sound kinda like the Pixies. They sounded EXACTLY like the Pixies. And I fucking loved it! I immediately played the tape again. Then again and again, several more times. I called Tracey raving about how amazing this two-song tape by an unknown local band from Ft. Worth really was! She just laughed and said ‘I told ya!’  When the band started holding auditions for a new drummer I landed the job and have been there ever since! All because I fell in love with this tape. And that’s why I can truthfully and quite literally say: This tape changed my life!’

Toadies line up on this recording is: Vaden Todd Lewis, (who wrote and produced the songs) on vocals and guitar; Charles Mooney III on lead guitar; Lisa Umbager on bass; and Michael Jerome Moore on drums and percussion. Lewis, Mooney, and Umbarger met while working together at the record store chain Sound Warehouse in Ft. Worth. The cassette was originally sold only at live shows or from one of the band members at Sound Warehouse. This will mark its first commercially available release, as well as the first time it will be released on vinyl and digitally. It can be purchased here.  

As for new music, Toadies will enter the studio with Steve Albini to record their next album late this summer.  Toadies guitarist  Clark Vogeler says,“There are records in each of our collections that were recorded by Steve Albini and which mean the world to us.  The sound he brought to records like The Pixies’ Surfer Rosa, and PJ Harvey’s Rid of Me, capture the feeling of being in a room with a band while they play (quite loudly, it would appear).  A personal fave, Wedding Present’s Seamonsters saved me in a way that no other record has.  The emotion of the songs just pours out of the speakers.  His recordings of bands are honest; there’s not much in the way of Pro Tools fixing (he records to tape) or studio trickery (no autotune in sight!).  It’s mostly just a band in a room with microphones, playing the songs, and that appeals to us at this point.  We’ve always felt like we could deliver live, so why not record the band live?”  The new set is planned for a 2024 release with details to be announced while the band is in talks with new labels. 

Prior to entering the studio, Toadies will have their first live outing of 2023 on a small run of Southeast dates surrounding  Memphis’ Beale Street Music Festival on May 5. The fest line up also includes  Robert Plant, Lumineers, The Roots, The Struts etc.  

Toadies Tour Dates

May 4 –  Fayetteville, AR – JJ’s Live 

May 5 – Memphis, TN – Beale St. Music Festival

*More dates announced  April 28th

Toadies have also just announced a collaboration with Soundwaves Art Foundation. Soundwaves is the creation of British-born artist Tim Wakefield. Now based in Austin, the philanthropic foundation combines music, modern art, and technology by translating digital soundwaves of iconic songs into one-of-a-kind artworks to raise money for nonprofits. Artists that have recently released prints include Willie Nelson,   Blondie, The Cure, LCD Soundsystem and more. The Toadies ‘Possum Kingdom’ print is part of a series celebrating central Texas artists including Midland, Shakey Graves,  Ray Wylie Hubbard, Hayes Carll and Bob Schneider.  Proceeds from the Toadies hand signed ‘Possum Kingdom’ Soundwave will be split between Austin’s  SIMs and Dallas’ Foundation 45. Both organizations provide mental health and substance use recovery services especially aimed at musicians. Toadies Soundwave art print is available in three editions here.