After thirteen years of creating music, Generationals have made the record they have been pursuing from the start. In an age that demands constant content churn from artists, Grant Widmer and Ted Joyner have stubbornly stuck to quietly refining their own signature sound. Their new album, Heatherhead, out June 2nd on Polyvinyl, could be the band’s thesis statement.

In addition to the album announcement, the duo has released “Dirt Diamond,” the album’s debut single, along with a video by POND Creative (Soccer Mommy, TOLEDO). Similar to songs like “When They Fight, They Fight” the lead track hits immediately with thick riffs and memorable momentum. “Dirt Diamond” came from daydreams of being on the road again during the pandemic. Widmer shares: “I felt some catharsis in shouting ‘Are you okay?’ over the chorus and the feeling has stuck with me every day since.”

Having worked before with legends like Richard Swift, the New Orleans-born duo this time teamed up Nick Krill (The War on Drugs, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Spinto Band), and welcomed in collaborators including Small Black, Seth Kaufman (Floating Action) and Jonny Campos (Lost Bayou Ramblers)among others – even a wrong number voicemail, sampled on “Strangers.”

Heatherhead is the result of a restart. After scrapping sessions that sounded great but weren’t exciting and true to them, instead of reinventing their approach to chase a fanciful trend, they found a better understanding of their identity and sound than ever before. When a severe storm ripped through Widmer’s front yard and left them without power for days during recording, the two just sat together, drinking warm beer and listening to an emergency radio. These 11 songs similarly feel conversational and lived-in – as effortless, endearing and settling as a long hug from an old friend. They are no-fuss, no-filler manifestations of Generationals’ bittersweet beauty, of would-be rock anthems made to feel like cozy sweaters. The record at large digs deeper into the juxtapositions that have long made the band so compelling: soft but pointed, dry but warm, distinct but familiar. It may just be their best yet.

Photo Courtesy: POND Creative