Canyons and Locusts don’t hold back on punchy new single ‘Soo All The Way’
The latest stomper from the Boston + Phoenix noise-rock band takes inspiration from up north and arrives on Friday, January 19
NOW PLAYING: Listen to ‘Soo All The Way’ via Spotify
New EP ‘The Red Angel’ is dedicated to Justine Covault and set for March release
Boston, MA [January 19, 2024] – In music and in life, and at the start of the year or any other time, it’s important to never take half-measures. That simple directive is at the core of “Soo All The Way,” the punchy new single from Canyons and Locusts, set to crash the streams on Friday, January 19.
And that extra “o” in the title’s “Soo” is certainly deliberate, as it’s a shoutout from the Boston and Phoenix noise-rock duo to Sault Ste. Marie, the international border cities of Michigan and Ontario – dubbed the “Soo” – that have a special place in the heart of Canyons and Locusts’ guitarist and vocalist Justin Keane. His fuzzed-out guitar riffage and gritty vocal howl pairs perfectly with drummer Amy Young’s thunderous and propulsive beat, allowing the duo to showcase what they do best in a robust 131-second runtime.
“For my work, I am part of a mentoring group based out of Sault Ste. Marie – and through that group I've met some of the coolest and nicest people in my life,” Keane says. “One of the things they mention is that while the winters can be pretty long – and rough, but also beautiful – the summers are so lovely and the time when many folks take to their cabins and camps and cottages for vacation. So, thematically… it’s just about that cycle of going inward in the winter and outward in the summer – going ‘Soo All The Way.’”
The Boston-based Keane feels a special kinship with Sault Ste. Marie, as New England’s seasons have the same type of extremities. And the dual elements and dichotomy of environments is certainly a key element in the music of Canyons and Locusts, as not only do the duo merge noisy, unhinged guitar-rock with a melodic and calculated spirit, but Keane’s Boston weather is usually at odds with the desert landscape of Young’s home out in Phoenix, Arizona.
“Generally, Justin will let me know when he has a batch of songs in the works and what he's thinking about for a song,” Young notes. “Even though he's writing the songs, I often feel like the records can pertain to the general ongoing conversations we have, in mood and tone. It's never not relatable and it's always a guide.” Adds Keane: “This was a song with a winter riff/verse and a summer chorus. Amy has this way of just getting things I haven't been able to crystallize yet and it's just perfect and moves the song where it's meant to go.”
This theme of duality is reflected in the “Soo All The Way” artwork, designed by Young, which features fallen snow across cacti and agave plants as city buildings and majestic mountains loom in the distance. The physical separation between the two Canyons and Locusts players does not hinder their creative chemistry, however.
“There are so many times that we can get what the other person means without a long explanation,” Young admits. “Sometimes it's a word or a reference to something and then it informs how we move forward. In this case, I immediately felt the vibe of Sweet’s ‘Love Is Like Oxygen’, and telling Justin that gave me an idea of where I wanted to go with the beat. It just clicked into place. Living far away from anyone you want to create and hang out with isn't always ideal but it's not uncommon these days. We have the technology, you know. For Canyons and Locusts, this, in some ways, allows us to maximize our creative time – and we do. We can schedule blocks of time to do shows or record. We never complain about any of it, as we're just driven to move full steam ahead.”
Co-produced by Keane alongside Ethan Dussault and recorded at New Alliance Audio in Somerville, “Soo All The Way” is the third single from Canyons and Locusts’ forthcoming EP, The Red Angel, set for release on March 15. The EP is dedicated to, and named after, the late Red on Red Records founder and Boston music scene champion Justine Covault, who personally signed the band a few years back and released through Red on Red their 2022 album Roll The Dice. The band were in the midst of recording this batch of new songs last summer when Covault unexpectedly passed away; left without a label home, Keane and Young decided to self-release the EP in her honor.
Pushing forward and never letting up, this new barnstormer follows two singles that closed out last year in “Buck Dharma’s Eyes” and “To Art Bell,” and the band has another single set to surface on Valentine’s Day. With each fuzzy guitar riff and stomp-along beat, The Red Angel EP is taking its noisy shape, one track at a time.
“Ultimately, I think these would have been the first three singles of the bigger album we'd been thinking of,” Keane concludes. “They're all in their own way about places the narrator of each song has never been but has this sort of nostalgia and longing for – like Buck Dharma's an island song, and Art Bell's a space rock desert song, and this one is a Soo winter/summer song. I think on a very basic level, music can do that for you – and that's one of the best things about deep listening experiences: It takes you to a very specific time and place whether you've been there or not, you know?”
And when you’re there, it’s up to you to give it all you got.
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Canyons and Locusts are:
Justin Keane: Vocals and guitar
Amy Young: Drums and backing vocals
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‘Soo All The Way’ production credits:
Produced by Justin Keane and Ethan Dussault
Recorded at New Alliance Audio in Somerville, MA
Single artwork by Canyons and Locusts
Canyons and Locusts short bio:
Canyons and Locusts are a two-piece band featuring Boston’s Justin Keane on vocals and guitar and Phoenix’s Amy Young on drums and backing vocals. Fueled by the chaos of the world and an urgent need to be part of the conversation, the two took the indie rock foundation they built together in previous bands, adding new levels of noise via pervasive, edgy guitar sounds, low and thundery drum beats, and vocals that capture a mix of emotions and power dynamics. A new EP, The Red Angel, dedicated to Red on Red Records’ Justine Covault, is set for release in March 2024, led by a trio of singles in “Buck Dharma’s Eyes,” “To Art Bell,” and the recent “Soo All The Way.”
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Media praise for Canyons and Locusts:
“Picking up where October’s furious ‘Buck Dharma’s Eyes’ left off, ‘To Art Bell’ is a hazy fever of gritty alt-rock and Midwestern college rock that clocks in at just over two minutes in runtime. And it’s not lost on the band that this chaotic and noisy tune is inspired, in part, by a radio host who’s timbre and cadence helped put listeners at ease.” _The Big Takeover
"The song [‘To Art Bell’] is a fuzzed out indie rock song that sounds like a sludgier Guided By Voices. It's a fun and upbeat rocker that's a fitting tribute to the radio host. It's the kind of song that's loud and thunderous, but surprisingly catchy.” _If It’s Too Loud
“Packed with ample doses of throwback punk energy and a sneering-forward delivery, ‘Buck Dharma’s Eyes’ is everything you’d hope alluding to the BOC frontman, and everything you need to push through the artificial. It is an escape from the clean-cut, over-produced nonsense and exists confidently in its attitude. Laced with an energetic fervor, the two-minute single leaves me wanting so much more. But tis the season to be thankful for what we have.” _Nanobot Rock
“Keane handles the vocals and guitars, Young handles the drumming, and together they have a handle on just about everything when it comes to the RAWK! In tribute to late broadcaster Art Bell from an EP that’s itself a tribute to the late Justine Covault, the aptly titled new track finds its niche between ’90’s Alternative and ’80’s Americana (‘Alternacana’, anyone???) for a steady stomp that gives just a taste of Young’s tremendous percussive power and Keane’s gruff Mike Ness-like croon within its’ abrupt but aurally satisfying 134 seconds.” _Rock And Roll Fables
“OMG! This jagged jackhammer hit my ears on the spot. Imagine AC/DC’s over-aged school boy Angus Young doing what he does best, playing the same riff over and over again, and Sonic Youth doing what they did best, turning up the amps, the hubbub and the noizz. Add hefty drumming and biting vocals and what we get is a badass beast of a blast. Fasten your seat-belt.” _Turn Up The Volume
“When we heard ‘To Art Bell,’ from Boston and Phoenix duo Canyons And Locusts, it felt like a musical awakening. To hear music and melodies orchestrated like they are presented on ‘To Art Bell’ was absolute magic.” _The Whole Kameese
“Canyons and Locusts’ new track ‘Buck Dharma’s Eyes’ brings back memories of the early 2000s. With the gritty guitar and equally gravelly vocal performance, you can imagine this tune introducing the latest coming-of-age blockbuster that will have teens and young adults lining up around the block.” _Indie Band Guru
“‘Buck Dharma’s Eyes’ presents a raw indie rock energy, gritty and live-sounding in its authenticity but mysterious, thoughtful and elusive in its vague though cutting lyrical journey.” _Stereo Stickman
“Canyons and Locusts do a lot with just two instruments and they've had a signature sound since the first single. Their newly released song ‘Buck Dharma’s Eyes’ has that sound. They've managed to keep things interesting with melody and lyric content and that’s the case here. We really want to read into ‘Buck Dharma’s Eyes’ but the lyrics don’t reveal anything specific. The repeated use of ‘amen’ also raises the stakes. The verses when read without the music almost seem like a meditation, a calming. Is the title just a way to get the word ‘dharma’ (cosmic order) into the song? It’s all intriguing.” _Boston Groupie News
“‘Buck Dharma’s Eyes’ initially leads with a fuzzy melodic tempting but soon reveals its garage punk instincts as Keane’s distinctive tones share their emotive contemplation. Already that pop catchiness is fuelling the track’s swing though, a listener involving courting simply adding greater potency to its aligning sonic discord and emotive anxiety. As a whole, ‘Buck Dharma’s Eyes’ is a track bound in thick infectiousness, its contagion of noise and melodic fire cast with a similarly organic trespass of enterprise which we for one were very quickly enamoured with.” _The RingMaster Review
