Los Angeles’ Allah-Las have announced the October 13 release of their new album, Zuma 85.   Now they share the first taste of the new album via the lead single and LP opener, “The Stuff,” b/w the title track “Zuma 85.”  The glammy and electronic strut “The Stuff” signals the start of a new era for Allah-Las, and finds the band reinventing itself in defiance of the algorithmic categorization and robotic sterility.  Showing another side of the album the instrumental “Zuma 85” features field recordings with chimes that precede Manuel Göttsching (Ash Ra)-style guitars, which drift aquatically over a motorik rhythm and hazy synths.  

Sharing a name with “Zuma 85” is a photo of an abandoned house by California photographer John Divola. Selected by Correia, the band’s resident photography head and album art designer, it juxtaposes a visage of man-made chaos against the natural beauty of the West Coast. It served as an unspoken reference point for the album, a symbolic totem indicative of a new era. 

“‘The Stuff’ is a tongue-in-cheek ode to rock tropes and nostalgic sentiments in the music world, including stereotypes of musicians and various trends in music,” says the band. “This is sonically embodied with vocoder, guitar solos, and a steady, driving rhythm.” Listen to “The Stuff” b/w “Zuma 85” here. 

Allah-Las have confirmed Summer and Fall Tour dates that include headline shows and festival dates across the US, Mexico and Europe. The tour kicks off June 15 in Oslo, NO and concludes November 18 in San Francisco, CA.  Along the way they wll play at New York City’s Rockaway Beach on August 4 at the Rockaway Beach Hotel and at The Lodge Room in Los Angeles on November 15 and November 16. All announced shows are listed below and tickets are available here. 

Zuma 85 is being released via the band’s own label, Calico Discos, in partnership with Innovative Leisure, which released earlier defining statements from the band including the eponymously named Allah-Las (2012) and Worship The Sun (2014).   

Zuma 85 finds the Allah-Las departing familiar territory and embracing the influence of late-era Lou Reed and John Cale, the ‘70s mutant pop of Peter Ivers and early Eno and Roxy Music, and textures borrowed from Japanese pop and loner-folk obscurities. There are kosmische zones, like the Popol Vuh-evoking “Hadal Zone,” anthemic and electronic boogies like “The Stuff” and “Sky Club,” and arch prog on tunes like “GB BB” and “Smog Cutter.” 

Allah-Las Tour Dates

6/15 – 17 – PiP Fest – Oslo, NO 

6/16 – Bergenfest (Bergenhus Fortress & Castle) – Bergen, NO 

6/17 – Pumpehuset – Copenhagen, DK 

6/20 – Slaktkrykan – Stockholm, SE 

6/22 – Selección Sonora @ Centro Cultural Ágora – A Coruna, Galicia, ES 

6/23 – Dabadaba – Donosti, ES 

6/24 – Tomavistas – Madrid, ES 

6/25 – Wheels & Waves – Biarritz, FR 

6/28 – Zeltival @ Tollhaus – Karlsruhe, DE 

8/3 – Levitate – Boston, MA 

8/4 – The Rockaway Hotel – Queens, NY 

8/30 – Mascotte – Zurich, CH 

9/1 – Room 2 – Glasgow, UK 

9/2 – Psych Fest – Manchester, UK 

9/3 – End Of The Road Festival – Salisbury, UK 

9/4 – Marble Factory – Bristol, UK 

9/6 – KOKO – London, UK 

9/7 – Chalk – Brighton, UK 

9/9 – Le Trianon – Paris, FR 

9/10 – Cactus – Bruges, BE 

9/11 – Paradiso – Amsterdam, NL 

9/13 – Huxleys – Berlin, DE 

9/14 – Muffathalle – Munich, DE

9/16 – Technopolis – Athens, GR 

10/23 – Crescent Room – Phoenix, AZ 

10/24 – Launch Pad – Albuquerque, AZ 

10/26 – Ferris Wheelers Backyard – Dallas, TX 

10/29 – Belly Up – Aspen, CO 

10/31 – Metro Music Hall – Salt Lake City, UT 

11/1 – Treefort Music Hall, Boise, ID

11/2 – Rev Hall – Portland, OR 

11/3 – Freakout – Seattle, WA 

11/4 – Volcanic Theatre Pub – Bend, OR 

11/6 – Goldfield Trading Post – Sacramento, CA 

11/7 – Phoenix Theater – Petaluma, CA 

11/8 – SLO Brew – San Luis Obispo, CA 

11/15 – Lodge Room – Los Angeles, CA 

11/16 – Lodge Room – Los Angeles, CA 

11/18 – August Hall – San Francisco, CA

Photo Courtesy: Alexandra Cabral