A thunderous squall of a song, “Serafina” provides an arresting introduction to the upcoming album ‘STRAY’. Channeling the anarchic energy of The Birthday Party and The Gun Club, in combination with Reid Blateh’s dramatic lyrical style the track imbues the story of a pair suburban misfits with apocalyptic weight. Bambara’s rhythm section rattles and bursts behind a frantic descending guitar lead as Reid, in a fraying baritone, weaves a tale set in his home state of Georgia that acknowledges the history of the place with subtle Civil War allusions, while conjuring an immediate atmosphere of backwoods unease. As Reid says, it’s a song built to communicate an unhinged energy.
Stray is a death-obsessed album. Most of the songs are about different characters’ futile attempts at living meaningful lives under the weight of imminent annihilation. I wanted “Serafina” to feel different. I wanted the song to radiate a sort of wild-eyed hope. A youthful disregard for death itself. Serafina and Sadie live exactly how they want to live, exploring their love for one another before a backdrop of flames. The knowledge of their own mortality takes nothing from their enthusiasm for life. If anything, they see it as a challenge they might one day overcome together. When they say, “We’ll never die” I want it to feel like they might actually have a shot. ~ Reid Blateh
Bambara are embarking on a UK tour that begins in Bristol at the Simple Things Festival on October 19th. Additionally, they are today announcing a Brooklyn show at St. Vitus on November 8th and a full US tour in support of the album to take place in 2020. Full details can be found below.
STRAY will be released on Wharf Cat Records on February 14th, 2020.
Tour Dates
10/19/2019 – Simple Things Fest – Bristol, UK
10/20/2019 – SWN Fest – Cardiff, UK
10/22/2019 – Soup Kitchen – Manchester, UK
10/23/2019 – Hyde Park Book Club – Leeds, UK
10/25/2019 – Record Junkie – Sheffield, UK
10/26/2019 – The Poetry Club – Glasgow, UK
10/28/2019 – Green Door Store – Brighton, UK
10/29/2019 – Sebright Arms – London, UK
11/8/2019 – St. Vitus – Brooklyn, NY
2/19/2020 – Union Stage – Washington, DC
2/20/2020 – Boot & Saddle – Philadelphia, PA
2/22/2020 – Great Scott – Boston, MA
2/24/2020 – Bar Le Ritz – Montreal, QC
2/25/2020 – The Garrison – Toronto, ON
2/26/2020 – Beachland Tavern – Cleveland, OH
2/27/2020 – PJ’s Lager House – Detroit, MI
2/28/2020 – Sleeping Village – Chicago, IL
2/29/2020 – 7th Street Entry – Minneapolis, MN
3/3/2020 – The Sunset – Seattle, WA
3/4/2020 – Fox Cabaret – Vancouver, BC
3/5/2020 – Doug Fir Lounge – Portland, OR
3/6/2020 – Cafe Du Nord – San Francisco, CA
3/7/2020 – The Echo – Los Angeles, CA
3/9/2020 – The Rebel Lounge – Phoenix, AZ
3/10/2020 – Lowbrow Palace – El Paso, TX
3/11/2020 – Barracuda – Austin, TX
3/12/2020 – Ruins – Dallas, TX
3/13/2020 – Hi Tone (Small Room) – Memphis, TN
3/14/2020 – The High Watt – Nashville, TN
3/15/2020 – The Earl – Atlanta, GA
3/17/2020 – Cat’s Cradle Back Room – Carrboro, NC