Rye Coalition will return next month with a new album, “Curses” due April 18 via Gern Blandsten. Produced by Nirvana/Foo Fighters principal Dave Grohl, it is the rock act’s first full-length effort since 2002’s Steve Albini-produced “On Top.”
“We had a lot more time to do this one,” drummer Dave Leto tells Billboard.com. “Before, we had to cut stuff in five days, but because Grohl was behind us, we got into a big time studio in L.A. for two months.”
The result is a 12-song throwback to the vintage hard rock of Black Sabbath (particularly on “Young Yellers”), Kiss (“Secret Heat”) and Motley Crue (“Pussyfootin'”). Much like Rye Coalition’s other releases, the guitar-drenched, fast-paced songs on “Curses” never lack in humor.
“It’s just who we are — we like to keep it funny. We’ve got some pretty stupid song titles,” Leto says, referring to tracks like “Between an I-ROC & a Hard Place” and “Vietnam Veterinarian.”
The album’s name was inspired by several years of label difficulties the band endured while working on the set, which was intended for release via DreamWorks. “Curses” was then bounced back and forth between Universal, Geffen and Interscope before winding up on Gern Blandsten, which released Rye Coalition’s first two albums.
“We had to go through a lot of contract crap to get the record back,” Leto admits. “Our A&R guy was gone and [Interscope] was just going to shelve it or do nothing with it if we didn’t pay them this six-figure [fee]. We finally got it back for free.”
The New Jersey-based quintet, which formed out of friendships dating back to grade school, is also releasing an hour-long companion DVD with behind-the-scenes footage of the making of the album. “It’s weird being on screen,” Leto says. “I guess we made it because it’s really funny and in 20 years I’ll show it to my kids.”
