Looking Glass War unleash a necessary fury with propulsive debut single ‘Arrive!’

Boston glam post-punk quartet make a bold and impactful statement with their first dose of music on Friday, July 14 

Looking Glass War’s incendiary debut EP set for release later this year

BOSTON, Mass. [July 14, 2023] -- Some bands make music because they want to. Looking Glass War make music because they have to. And the world will very soon find out why, as the incendiary Boston post-punk band unleash a calculated fury through appropriately-titled debut single “Arrive!”, set to crash the streams and shake up the scene on Friday, July 14.  

Years in the making and ripe for the taking, the fire inside Looking Glass War was first sparked by a spontaneous phone call in the boring and otherwise uninspired Fall 2022, where two creative sides with deep roots in the Boston music scene came together to make the music that stirred within. 

Its members quickly bonded over a shared love of glam, post-punk, modern rock, shoegaze, UK indie, and Britpop, as well as a familiarity from a distance of each other’s past work. And what developed was an adrenalized sound and style that makes its first impact through the propulsive “Arrive!” – exclamation point both required and warranted – the lead track and first offering of a four-song EP set for release this fall.    

“‘Arrive!’ seemed like a fitting first shot across the bow because this band is literally ‘arriving’ on the scene,” says vocalist Goddamn Glenn. “It can also be interpreted as a call to action, as in ‘arrive at our show and check this out’.” Adds drummer Tony Porter: “When we were all talking about the first track to release, we wanted to start off with a banger, and we felt that ‘Arrive!’ had the most driving beat of them all. In my opinion, the tempo and vibe of the track matches best with this time of year as well. Fast paced, spirited, and easy to dance to.” 

The aforementioned phone call that led to the formation of Looking Glass War was placed by Glenn, who alongside Porter had steered their sonic ship called Parlour Bells through Boston’s treacherous scene waters for years. Looking to start something new in a post-pandemic landscape, he reached out to guitarist Pete Zeigler, known for his work in bands like The Easy Reasons and The Rationales. Unbeknownst to Glenn, Zeigler had already been working on new material with Mancunian ex-pat bassist Mike Ackley, formerly of Strangeways – though they were missing the alchemic elements that Glenn and Porter would soon stir up.    

“2022 was an incredibly rough year,” says Zeigler. “In January we lost Jason Macierowski of The Easy Reasons; and then in May, Dave Mirabella of The Rationales passed away. At the same time, Mike and I had been working on new tunes but nothing was coming of it, and we paused for the summer. I knew I had to get something going, like a compulsion in the face of so much loss. I was really battling with returning to the music world and engaging more broadly but knew I had to find a way. I really enjoyed playing with Mike and wanted more from it.” 

Then the call from Glenn came in.  

“Glenn was asking if I was interested in starting something new,” Zeigler adds. “I said, ‘Yes, absolutely’ and he asked if I knew any bassists. Just so happened that Mike and I already had some songs in the works, and were excited about melding them with Glenn and Tony. From the first session, we all knew this was something special and once we all started writing new material together, ironing out our system, it really gelled… I decided to throw away my whole playing style [from prior bands] and start fresh and find a group of true equal partners. This is that for me. Making the art I truly love with great friends and hopefully giving people a soundtrack that is both familiar and new at the same time.”

Adds Ackley: “We really clicked, and were very much coming from the same place musically – based mainly on that ‘80s British post-punk vibe with driving bass and angular guitars. We started writing but despite some ‘interesting’ encounters, really struggled to find a singer that was coming from the same musical place as us and could really bring the tunes to life. Things were getting pretty frustrating, then, as Pete said – he got the call from Glenn out of the blue and Looking Glass War was born.”

Coincidentally, both Glenn and Zeigler credit the late Dave Mirabella for separately suggesting they both get back out there and create music together, understanding both came from a similar creative foundation and musical influence. 

“As he mentioned, I reached out at just the right time,” says Glenn. “I was on vacation and started messaging him poolside about putting a band together. By the evening, Pete was already texting me demos he had on his phone. When I got home from vacation, I started laying the vocal melodies down over what he sent.”

While the forthcoming EP shows off a spectrum of sounds and styles, it’s “Arrive!” that positions Looking Glass War as an instant voice in the globally burgeoning post-punk scene. The track was produced by Brian Charles, with assistant engineer Adam Hand; recorded in Massachusetts at Mad Oak Studios in Allston and Rare Signals in Cambridge, MA; and mastered by Peter Linnane. All efforts helped bring a sonic movement to the forefront where four distinct players – vocalist Goddamn Glenn, guitarist Pete Zeigler, bassist Mike Ackley, and drummer Tony Porter – all contribute as equals, and deliver their particular set of skills to a dynamo of a track that races out of the speakers at the jump and simply never lets go. 

“During the very early writing days of this band, my grandfather passed away,” Glenn admits. “He was nearly 100 years old and such a huge figure in my life. As it turns out, this year I’ll be reaching the very age he was when I first entered this world. So I’ve been feeling deeply existential lately. ‘Arrive!’ embodies that sense of feeling both older, while realizing there’s still so much more road ahead. In terms of the meaning of the song, to ‘arrive’ is to live in the moment.” 

Not because one wants to, but because they simply have to. 

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Looking Glass War:

Mike Ackley: Bass 

Goddamn Glenn: Vocals

 Tony Porter: Drums

Pete Zeigler: Guitar

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‘Arrive!’ single artwork:

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‘Arrive!’ Production Credits:

Produced by Brian Charles

Adam Hand: Assistant Engineer

Recorded at Mad Oak Studios in Allston, MA, and Rare Signals in Cambridge, MA in Spring 2023

Mastered by Peter Linnane

Promotional photography by Coleman Rogers

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Looking Glass War artist bio:

In the Fall of  2022, Goddamn Glenn and Tony Porter (both of Parlour Bells) came together with fellow Boston scene veterans Pete Zeigler (The Easy Reasons, The Rationales) and Mike Ackley (Strangeways) to see what would happen when this group of seasoned  indie musicians made noise together. Each needed it as much as the others.

The spark was immediate. A new post-punk-meets-glam sound emerged, melding Glenn’s theatrical vocals with Pete’s shimmering and sputtering post-punk guitar, all driven by Mike’s propulsive UK bass lines and Tony’s precise beats.

They called it Looking Glass War.

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