Today, New Orleans’ indie-folk four piece band Motel Radio announced their debut album Siesta Del Sol due out July 12. Alongside the announcement, the band and Ghettoblaster have teamed up to release lead single, “Midnight” via a lyric video. The track blends indie folk melodies and ’60s era drum beats for an earnest yet tongue in cheek love song.

Explaining how the final song came together, frontman Ian Wellman says, “’Midnight’ is about the intense desire to be around someone you’re falling in love with. It’s about orbiting someone just to bask in their glow, even if it puts you in situations you don’t want to be in. It’s about the jealousy you experience when you can’t have someone to yourself.”

Harmony is king for dual frontman outfit Motel Radio, as they build silky, melodic guitar waves for their stacked vocals to surf across. Breezy yet intentional, pop-minded yet psychedelic; their new album title was inspired by a jukebox song the band heard at a bar in Marfa. Siesta Del Sol was written and recorded with producer and engineer Eric Heigle at Wix Mix Productions and the band’s home studio in New Orleans. In support of the dynamic 10 song LP, the band will kick off a national tour with a NOLA hometown release show on June 21 followed by a 5-week summer tour with Summer Salt. Full list of tour dates below.                       

Formed in 2014, the band has approached songwriting with a reverence for past influences coupled with an enthusiasm for contemporary artists. Since their last EP release Desert Surf Films in 2016, the band has played festivals across the U.S. including New Orleans Jazz Fest, Firefly Festival, Voodoo, and SXSW and opened for artists such as Kurt Vile, Moon Taxi, Drive By Truckers, Dylan LeBlanc and more.

Motel Radio

* – w/ Summer Salt & Dante Eliphante

6/15: Helotes, TX @ John T. Floore Country Store

6/21: New Orleans, LA: Tipitina’s

7/13: Dallas, TX @ Trees*

7/14: Houston, TX @ White Oak Music Hall*

7/16: Orlando, FL @ The Abbey*

7/17: Tampa, FL @ The Orpheum*

7/18: Atlanta, GA @ Hell at The Masquerade*

7/19: Durham, NC @ Motorco Music Hall*

7/20: Richmond, VA @ The Broadberry*

7/21: Washington DC @ U Street Music Hall*

7/23: Philadelphia, PA @ The Foundry at The Fillmore*

7/24: Brooklyn, NY @ Warsaw*

7/25: Cambridge, MA @ The Sinclair*

7/26: Hartford, CT @ Webster Underground*

7/27: Pittsburgh, PA @ Spirit Hall*

7/28: Cleveland, OH @ Beachland Ballroom*

7/29: Detroit, MI @ The Shelter at Saint Andrews Hall*

7/30: Chicago, IL @ Bottom Lounge*

8/1: St Paul, MN @ Amsterdam Bar & Hall*

8/3: St Louis, MO @ Duck Room at Blueberry Hill*

8/4: Lawrence, KS @ The Bottleneck*

8/6: Denver, CO @ Bluebird Theater*

8/7: Salt Lake, UT @ In the Venue*

8/9: Vancouver, BC @ Fox Cabaret*

8/10: Seattle, WA @ Neumos*

8/11: Portland, OR @ Aladdin Theater*

8/13: San Francisco, CA @ Great American Music Hall*

8/15: Los Angeles, CA @ The Fonda Theatre*

8/16: San Diego, CA @ House of Blues*

8/17: Phoenix, AZ @ Crescent Ballroom*

8/18: El Paso, TX @ Lowbrow Palace*

9/22: Gulfport, MS @ Chillin’ on the Gulf Coast Music Festival