Today, Violet Grohl releases ‘Cool Buzz‘, the jagged and snarling new song from her recently announced debut album, Be Sweet To Me, due May 29th via Auroura Records / Republic Records / Island EMI Label Group. The track’s music video, directed by Niki Milan Houston, will be released this Friday May 1st.
‘Cool Buzz’ is about “poking fun at moral inconsistencies in punk guys who preach progressive politics, but then in their own musical spaces won’t let women have a chance,” says Grohl. “Shoot my favorite arrow/Through the mind that’s narrow,” she coolly taunts over music worthy of windmill kicks and circle pits. ‘Cool Buzz’ is the latest release from Be Sweet To Me, following previously shared singles ‘THUM‘, ‘Applefish‘ and ‘595‘.
NME praised ‘THUM’ for “muscular riffs and raw, unvarnished emotions,” and noted that ‘Applefish’ demonstrates Grohl’s softer side “with a cinematic flair and tender production,” while Consequence called “595” “a striking, tongue-in-cheek single with instantly memorable hooks.” The album was recorded at producer Justin Raisen’s (Kim Gordon, Charli XCX) Los Angeles home studio, alongside musicians assembled in the spirit of the Wrecking Crew session players of the ’60s and ’70s.
As well as playing her first UK shows at Reading and Leeds Festivals this summer, Violet is announcing her first ever US headline shows with an east coast run this summer that includes dates in New York, Philadelphia and Washington DC. Tickets go on sale today, April 27th at 6PM BST. Be Sweet To Me is available for pre-order in black, blueberry jam (exclusive to indie retailers) and ivory vinyl (exclusive to the official artist store).
Alternative music from the late ’80s and early ’90s is a perpetual influence; “There’s something so powerful about that period of music, from the messaging to the visuals, it’s authentic and raw.” Pixies, Soundgarden, Cocteau Twins, The Breeders, PJ Harvey, The Muffs, Björk, Alice in Chains, L7, Juliana Hatfield: “I’ve listened to that stuff since I was a kid,” Grohl says. The songs on Be Sweet To Me were conjured from the immediate present and tend to be impressionistic, coloured by Grohl’s love of film, particularly the work of David Lynch, as seen in the release of ‘What’s Heaven Without You‘, a haunting track written in the aftermath of the Altadena fires in Los Angeles, inspired by David Lynch, which was made available along B-side ‘Swallowtail’ as an exclusive 7″ Record Store Day release. To celebrate the 7″ release, Violet played an in-store show at Fingerprints in Long Beach on Record Store Day.
See Violet Live:
6/4 – Brooklyn, NY @ Baby’s All Right
6/5 – Philadelphia, PA @ The Lounge at World Stage Live
6/6 – Washington, DC @ The Atlantis
6/23 – Baltimore, MD @ Nevermore Music Hall *
6/24 – New York, NY @ The Rooftop at Pier 17 *
8/23 – Hasselt, BE @ Pukkelpop Festival
8/28 – Leeds, UK @ Leeds Festival
8/29 – Stradbally, IE @ Electric Picnic
8/30 – Reading, UK @ Reading Festival
9/20 – Atlanta, GA @ Shaky Knees Festival
9/26 – Brooklyn, NY @ CBGB Festival
* w/ The Breeders
Be Sweet To Me tracklisting:
1. THUM
2. 595
3. Bug In The Cake
4. Last Day I Loved You
5. Big Memory
6. Mobile Star
7. Often Others
8. Applefish
9. Cool Buzz
10. Pool Of My Dream
11. Plastic Couch
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