Today VIRGINITY unveil their newest album “POPMORTEM” via Smartpunk Records. The collection of songs masterfully create sing-alongs out of sadness through the band’s quirky, authentic, and self aware approach to punk. From lost friendships to fleeting time and everything in between, Virginity encapsulates the feeling of riding life’s roller coasters throughout their tracklist. Despite seeming heavy, the emotions are juxtaposed by their signature adult emo sound.
Comments vocalist Casey Crawford: “POPMORTEM as an album is all about the songs, which may seem redundant but I mean that both literally and figuratively. More than a few of the tracks are literally about writing songs and my frustrations (and joy) with that process, as well as some reflection on tropes within the songwriting arena.
The actual process of putting these songs together was some of the most challenging creative work I’ve ever been a part of, but I feel like at the end of the day—regardless of what anyone else has to say about it—we accomplished what we were aiming for, which is a record with a collection of songs that we all really love and are just so fucking proud of. We pushed ourselves every time we were demoing or working in the studio to make interesting decisions and not allow our previous work or our genre to define those choices.
There are always happy accidents when you’re making art, but I’ve never worked on anything as intentional as this. We spent hours on guitar tones and sections of the music. We wrote and rewrote stuff from the ground up multiple times and scrapped maybe 8 songs entirely in the process. If we didn’t all love some aspect, we kept at it until we did. As we got closer and closer to wrapping it up, we started getting a better picture of exactly what the record could be and, at that point, I think we all pushed even harder. We also brought in outside help for the first time in having the powerful Jack Shirley (Rosenstock, Deafheaven) mix and master the record for us.
Now that we’re on the other side of that and I’ve had nearly a year to live with the record, I feel like it was the only decision to make. It’s almost like we made all the pieces for a jigsaw puzzle that only Jack could put together and he did so beautifully. We set out to try to make POPMORTEM something a little grander than its individual parts and, while everyone may not agree that we accomplished that, I feel like we got there. Like I said, we love these songs and I hope everyone that listens can hear the work, blood, sweat, and tears that went into it.”
Virginity plays punk music written through a mature lens.
Casey Crawford could mark across a map to symbolize the far-reaching influences where he began honing his voice. However, it’s in the visceral experiences of thirty-something crises where he fully discovered it. Only time and evolution could mix up their musical cocktail of accidental luck and punch-drunk honesty.
In 2019, The Alternative claimed With Time one of the best midyear releases while Washed Up Emo gave props to their “New Favorite Band.” Their energy is a culmination of Central Florida angst and unwavering lyrical storytelling. Their upcoming full length LP “PopMortem” is already making waves with standout features on Under The Radar, Audiotree, and Brooklyn Vegan and the band made their mark with concertgoers at The Fest in Gainesville – now it’s your turn to relish in the soundwaves too.
Smartpunk has been a recognizable name in the scene for a long time (remember that sponsored Warped Tour stage?!). After exchanging several hands and countless ideas of what it could and should be, they decided to start a record label in 2016 with the main idea of focusing solely on reissuing records that have been out of print or never on vinyl. After all, they’re a label of vinyl dorks themselves! After releasing Set Your Goals’ “Mutiny” and Gameface’s “Good,” they started to venture into signing newer bands. They actively balance in between many worlds—putting out amazing music from friends and bands that rock, reissuing older titles, and partnering with other incredible labels in our scene and doing exclusive color variants of their releases.
Since forming the record label, Smartpunk Records has released timeless albums such as Less Than Jake’s Anthem, Northbound’s Soul Kiss, RIVALS’ Damned Soul and upcoming sophomore release Sad Looks Pretty on Me, Clearbody’s One More Day, and legendary punk-crossover group Bandaid Brigade’s I’m Separate.
