(ASBURY PARK, NJ) -- Alt-rock band LATEWAVES has signed to Richmond-based Open Your Ears Records. The trio joins the independent label’s rapidly growing roster, which includes such artists as Another One Down!, House & Home, Guardrail, Sea Of Storms, and more.
Additionally, LATEWAVES has announced their new self-titled album, which will be released on September 29, 2023. Fans can check out lead single “Same Air” now here. Pre-save the album here.
The forthcoming self-titled LP blurs the lines of genres they never asked to be in and firmly states they are here to be an anthemic rock and roll band.
On the new single, the band shares, “’Same Air’ is inspired by the narcissist, whether proverbial or actual, in your life that you let get under your skin. A person that you can never do right by due to their unrealistic standards and false entitlement. It’s a 3 and a half minute middle finger to whoever is trying to define you. Don’t let them. Cut out the toxic people in your life. Love yourself. Musically inspired by the power choruses on Oasis’ ‘What’s the Story Morning Glory’ over guitars that sound somewhere in between a dream and a racetrack while the drums blow open the doors from 00:00 until the end.”
LATEWAVES formed on the beaches of Asbury Park, NJ in 2016. Mike Pellegrino (guitar/vocals), Shawna Grabowski (drums/vocals) and Howie Cohen (bass/vocals) hit the ground running with numerous EP’s, touring the East Coast and Midwest.
Whispers from peers in the community made their way to the ears of Brett Romnes and Vinnie Caruana (both of I Am The Avalanche, The Movielife). Romnes, an engineer working out of The Barbershop Studios in Lake Hopatcong, NJ, and Caruana agreed to co-produce the bands first full length record - an 11 track journey articulating both the lows of self-deprecation and the highs of self-realization. Two weeks after its completion, the world shut down, but LATEWAVES never hit the pause button. Determined to come out on the other side, a year’s worth of prep and patience paid off as the band signed with Know Hope Records to debut their LP Hell To Pay in June 2021.
Hell To Pay earned quick success on streaming services, landing spots on Apple Playlists including Jumpstart, New in Rock, Breaking Rock, Breaking Hard Rock, and Spotify’s All New Punk. The record placed in the top 200 on the NACC College Radio charts its first week, and saw over 1K in vinyl sales. Throughout all of this, the band found themselves supporting bands such as The Used, Can’t Swim, Just Surrender, Piebald, Murphy’s Law, Save Face, Hidden In Plain View, Hit The Lights, and lovelytheband. In 2022, they also played the 20th Anniversary of THE FEST in Gainesville, FL.
Tours continued as personal lives endured changing shapes and colors. In December of 2022, the three returned to the same studio with Romnes and Caruana to embark on recording LP2. Traveling in between sessions to support Midtown and on their “off days,” the band completed the record just days before the new year. LATEWAVES second full-length will be released via Open Your Ears Records.
The self-titled album borrows from the trio’s previous signature sound with a plethora of angsty riffs and anthemic sing-along rock songs, but it is no carbon copy of any of the band’s past releases. You can still anticipate all the catchy hooks, intricate guitar work, and three-part harmonies - but make sure you’ve strapped in for the ride. This record rockets into space the second it begins. Layered with both gut-wrenching and shit-eating-grin lyrics, the LATEWAVES self-titled will resonate with anyone with a pulse that values self-growth.
