Crushed Out, Thompson Springs, Oedipus Tex

Free.

press release: Crushed Out is husband-and-wife team Frankie Sunswept on guitar and Moselle Spiller on drums. Yet when they take the stage, they’re so much more than that — they’re the sun and the moon, the push and pull of tides, the rumble of kinetic momentum balanced on the tip of a surfboard.

It was 2009 in Bushwick when design grad Moselle accepted a party invite from her neighbor, a sunswept skater kid from suburban Los Angeles whose dad had been in Motown band The Messengers. Moselle, a visual designer in both the physical and digital realms, comes from a long line of artists and a family of hi-fi experts.The pair fell for one another and for rock n’ roll, and this surge of love culminated in their fast, bluesy and fuzzed-out 2010 debut EP, Show Pony.

Flush with enthusiasm, innocence, and the passion of live wires, the couple dove right into a few years of self-booked, “gnarly and jubilant” national tours, to warm press and a budding fan base. This set the stage for their debut full-length Want to Give (2012) fueled by Frankie’s wild vocals and driven by Moselle’s ferocious feminist drums. Popmatters called the record “a definite step up” and “[proof] that this band is making the right decisions.”

By the time they released their follow-up, Teeth (2014) the band had honed their production skills for their most diverse studio album yet. Dreamy surf, psych and spaghetti western vibes had begun to infuse Crushed Out’s sound, with layered instrumentation from Frankie on bass and keys, with Moselle singing harmonies — and designing album covers, and costumes, as well as creating and printing her own t-shirt designs. Her design work has long provided a key artistic touchstone for the band.

Alien Ocean (2016) is Crushed Out’s most definitive, cohesive, fleshed out album to date. Frankie dubs drunken lap steel, bassy analog synths, electric piano and Hammond organ, while Moselle’s passion and invention gives each track its own heartbeat. Frankie’s signature guitar tone, sometimes mystically fuzzing, at other times shimmering clean, recalls 60s surf culture and roaring cave creatures alike. The album tackles sophisticated themes, from love and communication to alienation and personal freedom, all while keeping it fun, heavy and wet.

Alien Ocean releases September 30 2016 via the band’s own imprint Cool Clear Water Records, available on limited 12” vinyl LP, CD, as well as all digital formats.