EMERY – Toby Morrell [vocals, guitar], Devin Shelton [vocals, bass], Josh Head [vocals, keys, synths], Matt Carter [guitar], and Dave Powell [drums] – have announced their new album Rub Some Dirt On It. The album — their ninth! — arrives on June 24 via Tooth & Nail Records. Pre-order it here.
The band has also shared the new single “I Don’t Know You At All.” Watch the video below.
“‘I Don’t Know You At All’ is somewhat of an experimental song for us,” the band explains. “We wanted it to feel like a loop that builds and changes dynamically throughout. The drum loop was recorded live, and perfectly captures the energy of the song from the first beat. Vocally, the melody and lyrics were intended to really push the dynamics to the next level.”
The band will also tour this summer. All dates are below.
About Rub Some Dirt On It, Shelton notes that the album “focuses on moments that were hard to navigate, but ultimately character-building experiences in our lives. When we would fall, scrape our knees, or get some other fairly insignificant injury, our dads would always say, ‘Rub some dirt on it.’ In other words, you’re tougher than you think. Instead of crying or dwelling on it, get up and keep going. Don’t let the pain define you. Instead, learn from it and become better.”
Emery have continued to grow and progress since emerging in 2004 with The Weak’s End. They’ve built a catalog of fan favorite albums such as The Question [2005], I’m Only a Man [2007], We Do What We Want [2011], You Were Never Alone [2015], and Eve [2018]. Most recently, 2020’s White Line Fever represented another evolution as The New Fury proclaimed, “Emery is still staying relevant after almost twenty years of being a band.” Along the way, they generated north of 100 million total streams and views and earned acclaim from Alternative Press, New Noise Magazine, and many more. Not to mention, they toured with everyone from Dance Gavin Dance and Silverstein to We Came As Romans and Norma Jean. Throughout 2021, the band self-produced what would become Rub Some Dirt On It, nodding to influences as diverse as Bahamas, Billie Eilish, and Underoath, as well as Nirvana, Alice In Chains, and Weezer. The group’s membership community Emeryland funded the record entirely, powering their self-contained ecosystem. As such, they pushed the envelope by making the album “in a two-hour span with 12 cameras and no breaks, just one session of pure collective focus.”
“Emeryland is comprised of those who most closely understand our band and deeply believe in us,” says Carter. “It gives us the confidence for the necessary risk required to push limits and try new things. In order to create at higher levels of intensity, more focus and pressure are needed than the usual basement tracking of individual parts alone. We’ve borrowed from the forms of standup comedy specials, sports, and even martial arts. We’re capable musicians and wanted to take the challenge of training for a one-time high-pressure event. It created the optimum amount of collective focus and brought out the best in our individual preparation.”
In the end, Emery deliver their most impactful statement with the album. “Music can offer so many different things to people no matter what they’re going through,” explains Shelton. “Lyrics and music can often say what conversations cannot. Emery has given us a license to live full lives, say things we believe, have unlimited fun, make changes that would otherwise be extremely difficult and do it all with our best friends. What a life.”
EMERY ON TOUR:
7/5 — Atlanta, GA — Masquerade
7/6 — Columbia, SC — New Brookland Tavern
7/7 — Tampa, FL — The Orpheum
7/8 — Orlando, FL — Henao Center
7/9 — Jacksonville, FL — 1904 Music Hall
7/10 — W. Palm Beach, FL — Respectables
8/16 — San Francisco, CA — August Hall
8/17 — Reno, NV — Virginia St. Brewhouse
8/18 — Los Angeles, CA — Regent Theater
8/19 — Anaheim, CA — Chain Reaction
8/20 — San Diego, CA — House of Blues
8/21 — Phoenix, AZ — Marquee Theater
9/ 14 — Tulsa, OK — Vanguard
9/ 16 — San Antonio, TX— Vibes Event Center
9/ 17 — Houston, TX — Scout Bar
9/ 18 — Austin, TX — Come and Take It Live
