Ray Bull—the New York-based duo of Aaron Graham and Tucker Elkins—release “Please Stop Laughing,” the third single and title track from their new album, Please Stop Laughing (AWAL), out May 8, 2026.

With “Please Stop Laughing,” the band has pivoted to create a longform video (and an alternate shortform version) leaning into their art and film backgrounds, while never sacrificing their knack for polished hooks. Commenting on the track, the band says: “It’s tough to say exactly what this song is about, but the title seems important and it’s where we got the title for the album. Something that feels kind of desperate and feels sort of human. I think we wanted to get close to something that feels human in that way. Pleading for somebody to stop pleading for grace, begging for dignity.”

Regarding the video, the band says, “We were interested in almost burying the song deep into the video, so it sneaks up on you, and almost becomes secondary, while still acting as the emotional core. It started with this image of a man walking around the city in a hospital gown with an IV hooked into his arm. It became this idea of someone trying to hide from their life. The character is almost like a monk. But even though he takes measures to reject real life, he can’t help but be sucked back in because he is so lonely. It’s a very human thing. We went to the most desolate area we could find which ironically made people feel really comfortable approaching Tucker. They were really curious. Pretty much everyone we met actually believed Tucker had just left the hospital.”

The question “Who is Ray Bull?” has been the engine behind one of the internet’s most fascinating indie breakthroughs. Is it one guy? Two? A viral account spiraling into a music project? Ray Bull has spent their existence purposefully blurring these lines. They are artists and they are musicians; they are deeply serious and terminally online; they are a pop group and an art project.

The sonic world of Please Stop Laughing feels familiar yet distinctly fresh and new. “It almost seemed like Please Stop Laughing was going to be an identity crisis. It felt existential,” Graham reflects. “The record could have been a folk record, easily. It could have been a pop record, easily.” But rather than choose a lane, they chose the collision.

Ray Bull was never going to be a band in the traditional sense because neither Elkins nor Graham set out to be musicians. They set out to be artists, and music just happened to be the most effective canvas. “We can be chameleons,” says Elkins. “We like working with variation.” Please Stop Laughing is the result of five years living and creating on top of each other. The album is an honest reflection of a manufactured identity, and the beautiful, messy dynamics of two artists working as one.

The band recently appeared on Subway Takes to express the opinion that “concerts are just a little too loud.” Starting next month, they’ll test this theory across the U.S. with recently announced tour dates in support of Please Stop Laughing. Tickets are available here and a full list of shows is below. All dates will be opened by NY duo Babehoven:

Tue. May 12 – Cambridge, MA @ The Sinclair

Thu. . May 14 – Toronto, ON @ The Mod Club

Fri. May 15 – Detroit, MI @ El Club

Sat. May 16 – Chicago, IL @ Lincoln Hall

Mon. May 18 – Saint Paul, MN @ Amsterdam Bar & Hall

Thu. May 21 – Denver, CO @ Bluebird Theater

Sat. May 23 – Salt Lake City, UT @ Soundwell

Mon. May 25 – Seattle, WA @ Neumos

Tue. May 26 – Vancouver, BC @ Fox Cabaret

Wed. May 27 – Portland, OR @ Holocene

Fri. May 29 – San Francisco, CA @ The Independent

Sat. May 30 – Los Angeles, CA @ El Rey Theatre

Sun. May 31 – San Diego, CA @ SOMA Sidestage

Tue. June 2 – Phoenix, AZ @ The Rebel Lounge

Fri. June 5 – Houston, TX @ White Oak Music Hall (Downstairs)

Sat. June 6 – Dallas, TX @ Club Dada

Sun. June 7 – Austin, TX @ Antone’s Nightclub

Tue. June 9 – Atlanta, GA @ The Masquerade (Purgatory)

Thu. June 11 – Washington, DC @ The Atlantis

Fri. June 12 – Philadelphia, PA @ The Foundry at The Fillmore

Sat. June 13 – New York, NY @ Bowery Ballroom

Photo Courtesy: Kyle Berger