Alex Maas of The Black Angels recently announced his mesmerizing and soul-bearing solo debut, Luca, and today he shares a new single off of the forthcoming record. Following the first single “Been Struggling,” “American Conquest” is a trance-inducing journey that focuses on issues close to home, like the horrific shootings ravaging the country in recent years. “So many people eat hatred and feed it to their children. On this song, I’m trying to make the point that we collectively need to change the diets of parents if we expect the future to be bright,” Maas explains of the track, which is more relevant than ever as we are 24 hours away from one of the most consequential elections in our country’s history. “The world is definitely messed up, but there’s a lot of good in it too. That’s why the whole world isn’t on fire—parts of it are. I do believe that there’s more good than evil.”

Named for Maas’ firstborn, whose name means “bringer of light,” Luca was a long time coming, with some of its songs dating back almost a decade, put together piece-by-piece over the course of a couple years. A powerful work of gentle psychedelia, and a notable sonic departure from the heavy, pulse-raising sound that Maas has become renowned for, Luca was co-produced by Maas and Jack White’s front of house, Brett Orrison. The album showcases “a whole different part of my brain,” according to Maas. “I wanted to go someplace musically that I’ve never gone before.” What resulted is a hypnotic detour along the wild trails of Maas’ homestead of Texas, driven by nature and colored by a swirl of meditative thoughts about its creator’s son, the often-scary world he was born into, and how to navigate the perils of modern society. 

Luca will be released on December 4th via Innovative Leisure. Pre-order the album now HERE.