The purpose of music is to draw listeners in, no matter what style or genre, and it seems Portland, Oregon’s Lions Of The Interstate has been meeting that goal since its inception back in 2019. That’s never an easy feat, which the band was able to accomplish with 3 EP releases throughout the band’s career. The group first formed with Ben Alberts and Rich Millward who were then joined by drummer Arturo Diaz. The band was later joined by longtime friend Jeremy Petersen handling bass. Also featured in the group is Kyla Henry who handles vocals, keyboard, and glockenspiel. By 2022, and Diaz contributing to the group’s songwriting, the members had 12 songs for a proper full-length release.

The end result is Strange Empires (Braxeling Records) slated for release in December of 2023. In anticipation of the album, the group shares “Shoegazers,” a song that features cooing vocals, jangly & breezy guitar play and an infectious melody.

Of the song, Arturo Diaz offers:

“Shoegazers was an attempt to write a song a lá My Bloody Valentine, more the frenetic drum fills and dreamy girl-guy vocals than anything super noisy. The lyrics actually came from a recording session we did at Cooper Mountain Sound. During a break in tracking for the day, some mushrooms were consumed and we kept tripping over our guitar cords. Of course, while tripping over things when tripping isn’t anything new, I blurted out ‘y’know, shoegazers don’t trip!’ Anyway, laughter ensued and it stuck for a title and the idea for the rest came a few weeks later.” 

Photo Credit: Michael Clifford