You’re up again in bed, waiting. The lamp on your bedstead flickers once as you try to read the novel you’ve been trying to read for the past 30 minutes. Didn’t you tell him this rock band business was all a waste of time? Yet he’s out there, at the same dive bar that he played last week, the same smoky watering hole where you met around this time last year. The words in the book blur into inky smears. Were all local-bound musos this bull-headed? Did he not see what a strained-out jerk he could be in the daylight, after he’d lost three jobs over the past six months? Still, you’ll wait. The red LED display on your digital clock glares midnight over the bedstead; he should be back soon.
OK, OK. So “Back By Midnight” definitely isn’t a true story; hometown surf-punk heroes Antarcticats won’t let anyone down, as far as we know. Unlike the deadbeat boyfriend fishing for apologies in this single, Andrew Joyce and his dynamic foursome (including new lead guitarist Lisa Rossi who gets ample opportunity to flash her chops here) aim to prove they won’t be stuck in a rut. We’ve mostly heard the band rip through tsunami-sized jams, so this doo-wop ballad showcases a gentler current to supplement their usual rush. Gotta face the facts, though: the gang DID promise a full-length LP around this time last year. But fear not, sleepy fans: we’re quite sure the dependable folk of Antarcticats won’t keep us waiting in 2018.
“Back By Midnight” is the first single from the band’s upcoming debut LP, I Know You Are, But What Am I?, out Mar. 30 via House Cat Records.
Antarcticats will perform tonight, Feb. 9, at the Drunken Unicorn alongside Trash Panda (Record Release). Doors open at 9 p.m. Admission is $10-25. All ages.
More Info
Bandcamp: antarcticats.bandcamp.com
Facebook: @antarcticats
Instagram: @antarcticatsband
SoundCloud: @antarcticats
Twitter: @AntarcticatsATL