{"title":"Car Seat Headrest","description":"","products":[{"product_id":"car-seat-headrest-teens-denial-vinyl","title":"Car Seat Headrest: Teens Of Denial (Vinyl 2xLP)","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003ciframe title=\"YouTube video player\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/_-l44-wxqcA?si=TilsChyhZLQZo1kA\" height=\"300\" width=\"full\"\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eTeens of Denial\u003c\/em\u003e is the thirteenth album in Car Seat Headrest's (aka 23-year-old Will Toledo) oeuvre, second on Matador, and first to be recorded in a proper studio with a full band and producer (Steve Fisk). On \u003cem\u003eDenial\u003c\/em\u003e, Toledo moves from bedroom pop to something approaching classic-rock grandeur and huge (if detailed and personal) narrative ambitions, with nods to the Cars, Pavement, Jonathan Richman, Wire, and William Onyeabor. By turns tender and caustic, empathetic and solipsistic, literary and vernacular, profound and profane, self-loathing and self-aggrandizing, he conjures a specifically 21st century mindset, a product of information overload, the loneliness it can foster, and the escape music can provide.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAt the heart of the album sits the 11:32 \"Ballad of the Costa Concordia\", which has more musical ideas than most whole albums (and at that length, it uses them all). Horns, keyboards, and elegant instrumental interludes set off art-garage moments; vivid vocal harmonies follow punk frenzy. The selfish captain of the capsized cruise liner in the Mediterranean in 2013 becomes a metaphor for struggles of the individual in society, as experienced by one hungover young man on the verge of adulthood.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003col\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cspan style=\"line-height: 1.5;\"\u003eFill In The Blank\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eVincent\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eDestroyed By Hippie Powers\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e(Joe Gets Kicked Out Of School For Using) Drugs With Friends (But Says This Isn’t A Problem)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eNot What I Needed\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eDrunk Drivers\/Killer Whales\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e1937 State Park\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eUnforgiving Girl (She’s Not An)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eCosmic Hero\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eThe Ballad Of The Costa Concordia\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eConnect The Dots (The Saga Of Frank Sinatra)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eJoe Goes To School\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ol\u003e","brand":"Matador ‎","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":39286619963507,"sku":"OLE10910","price":29.95,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1481\/5374\/files\/car-seat-headrest-teens-denial.jpg?v=1761686185"},{"product_id":"car-seat-headrest-twin-fantasy-vinyl","title":"Car Seat Headrest: Twin Fantasy (Vinyl 2xLP)","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003ciframe title=\"YouTube video player\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/l9Uw3AOAmf0?si=-eiHw_RoZGsqTD5C\" height=\"300\" width=\"full\" allowfullscreen=\"\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" frameborder=\"0\"\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWill Toledo always knew he would return to \u003ci\u003eTwin Fantasy\u003c\/i\u003e. He never did complete the work. Not really. Never could square his grand ambitions against his mechanical limitations. Listen to his first attempt, recorded at nineteen on a cheap laptop, and you’ll hear what Brian Eno fondly calls “the sound of failure” - thrilling, extraordinary, and singularly compelling failure. Will’s first love, rendered in the vivid teenage viscera of stolen gin, bruised shins, and weird sex, was an event too momentous for the medium assigned to record it. On the heels of the smashing success of \u003ci\u003eTeens of Denial\u003c\/i\u003e, Car Seat Headrest releases a new version of \u003ci\u003eTwin Fantasy\u003c\/i\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e“It was never a finished work,” Will says, “and it wasn’t until last year that I figured out how to finish it.” He has, now, the benefit of a bigger budget, a full band in fine form, and endless time to tinker. According to him, it took eight months of mixing just to get the drums right. But this is no shallow second take, sanitized in studio and scrubbed of feeling. This is the album he always wanted to make. It sounds the way he always wanted it to sound. It’s been hard, stepping into the shoes of his teenage self, walking back to painful places. There are lyrics he wouldn’t write again, an especially sad song he regards as an albatross. But even as he carries the weight of that younger, wounded Will, he moves forward. He grows. He revises, gently, the songs we love so much. In the album’s final moments, in those apologies to future me’s and you’s, there is more forgiveness than fury. This, Will says, is the most vital difference between the old and the new: he no longer sees his own story as a tragedy.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003col\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eMy Boy (Twin Fantasy)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eBeach Life-In-Death\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eStop Smoking (We Love You)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eSober to Death\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eNervous Young Inhumans\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eBodys\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eCute Thing\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eHigh to Death\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eFamous Prophets (Stars)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eTwin Fantasy (Those Boys)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ol\u003e","brand":"Matador ‎","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":39286610952307,"sku":"OLE10921","price":29.95,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1481\/5374\/products\/car-seat-headrest-twin-fantasy.jpg?v=1663412689"},{"product_id":"car-seat-headrest-teens-of-style-vinyl","title":"Car Seat Headrest: Teens Of Style (Vinyl LP)","description":"\u003ciframe width=\"full\" height=\"300\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/w2l8idGC-Uo?si=0BbD5A6tg1AT2RX7\" title=\"YouTube video player\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis prolific artist (ne Will Toledo) comes to Matador having already crafted an 11-album catalog of staggering depth, all self-released on Bandcamp, which has gained him an obsessive following and over 25,000 downloads - all without the muscle of a manager, label, agent, or publicist - until now. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCar Seat Headrest began in 2010 in Will Toledo's hometown of Leesburg, Virginia. Needing a place of solitude (and soundproofing) where he could record vocals undisturbed, a 17-year-old Toledo set up shop in the family car. Toledo's catalogue is sharp, literary, and culturally omnivorous as it touches upon youth and death, love and depression, drunken parties and 2nd century theologians. Ever surprising, his lyrical imagery ranges from playful to sexually frank to sorrowful, often within the same song.  After relocating to the Seattle suburbs in 2014, Toledo assembled a lineup with bassist Ethan Ives and drummer Andrew Katz. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eTeens of Style\u003c\/em\u003e is the first Car Seat Headrest album recorded with a full band, and the sound is vibrant and powerful, with a wide stylistic range. On \u003cem\u003eTeens of Style\u003c\/em\u003e, Toledo has taken material from the first three years of the band's existence and reworked it to generate some of the most realized arrangements to date. Drawing material from \u003cem\u003e3\u003c\/em\u003e (2010), \u003cem\u003eMy Back Is Killing Me Baby\u003c\/em\u003e (2011), and \u003cem\u003eMonomania\u003c\/em\u003e (2012), \u003cem\u003eTeens of Style\u003c\/em\u003e provides a concise overview of the band's many sonic and emotional facets, with the songs ranging from electronic psychedelia to punky anthems to melancholic acoustic numbers. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe longest track on \u003cem\u003eTeens of Style\u003c\/em\u003e, 'Times to Die,' is just under seven minutes, applying breakbeat cut-ups and 'Low Rider' horns to a groove-driven neo-psych jam with lyrics about Judaism, Hinduism, and the record business. Similarly, 'Maud Gone' is a wistful 60s-inspired pop number paying homage to Yeats's unrequited love, while the intricate party track 'Los Borrachos' borrows its title from the Diego Velasquez painting. Car Seat Headrest's conceptual ambition and stunning songwriting has been apparent since its early days of laptop recording, the scale of Toledo's vision going far beyond the constricting lo-fi term.  Now on his Matador Records debut, \u003cem\u003eTeens of Style\u003c\/em\u003e, we witness Toledo presenting his intricate ideas with more clarity and refinement than ever, delivering an enthralling collection of songs destined for wide acclaim.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003col\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eSunburned Shirts\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eThe Drum\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eSomething Soon\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eNo Passion\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eTimes To Die\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003ePsst, Teenagers, Take Off Your Clo\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eStrangers\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eMaud Gone\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eLos Borrachos (I Don't Have Any Hope Left, But The Weather Is Nice)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eBad Role Models, Old Idols Exhumed (Psst, Teenagers, Put Your Clothes Back O)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eOh! Starving\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ol\u003e","brand":"Matador ‎","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":31975383597171,"sku":"OLE10881","price":25.95,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1481\/5374\/products\/car-seat-headrest-teens-style.jpg?v=1652199491"},{"product_id":"car-seat-headrest-teens-of-denial-cd","title":"Car Seat Headrest: Teens Of Denial (CD)","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003ciframe title=\"YouTube video player\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/_-l44-wxqcA?si=TilsChyhZLQZo1kA\" height=\"300\" width=\"full\" allowfullscreen=\"\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" frameborder=\"0\"\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eTeens of Denial\u003c\/em\u003e is the thirteenth album in Car Seat Headrest's (aka 23-year-old Will Toledo) oeuvre, second on Matador, and first to be recorded in a proper studio with a full band and producer (Steve Fisk). On \u003cem\u003eDenial\u003c\/em\u003e, Toledo moves from bedroom pop to something approaching classic-rock grandeur and huge (if detailed and personal) narrative ambitions, with nods to the Cars, Pavement, Jonathan Richman, Wire, and William Onyeabor. By turns tender and caustic, empathetic and solipsistic, literary and vernacular, profound and profane, self-loathing and self-aggrandizing, he conjures a specifically 21st century mindset, a product of information overload, the loneliness it can foster, and the escape music can provide.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAt the heart of the album sits the 11:32 \"Ballad of the Costa Concordia\", which has more musical ideas than most whole albums (and at that length, it uses them all). Horns, keyboards, and elegant instrumental interludes set off art-garage moments; vivid vocal harmonies follow punk frenzy. The selfish captain of the capsized cruise liner in the Mediterranean in 2013 becomes a metaphor for struggles of the individual in society, as experienced by one hungover young man on the verge of adulthood.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003col\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cspan style=\"line-height: 1.5;\"\u003eFill in the Blank\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eVincent\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eDestroyed By Hippie Powers\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e(Joe Gets Kicked Out of School for Using) Drugs With Friends (But Says This Isn’t a Problem)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eNot What I Needed\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eDrunk Drivers\/Killer Whales\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e1937 Skate Park\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eUnforgiving Girl (She’s Not An)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eCosmic Hero\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eThe Ballad of the Costa Concordia\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eConnect the Dots (The Saga of Frank Sinatra)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eJoe Goes To School\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ol\u003e","brand":"Matador ‎","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47632760897882,"sku":null,"price":12.95,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1481\/5374\/files\/car-seat-headrest-teens-denial_40eefd68-47a5-479d-925a-207d980c43ed.jpg?v=1761686230"},{"product_id":"car-seat-headrest-twin-fantasy-2cd","title":"Car Seat Headrest: Twin Fantasy (2xCD)","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003ciframe title=\"YouTube video player\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/l9Uw3AOAmf0?si=-eiHw_RoZGsqTD5C\" height=\"300\" width=\"full\"\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWill Toledo always knew he would return to \u003ci\u003eTwin Fantasy\u003c\/i\u003e. He never did complete the work. Not really. Never could square his grand ambitions against his mechanical limitations. Listen to his first attempt, recorded at nineteen on a cheap laptop, and you’ll hear what Brian Eno fondly calls “the sound of failure” - thrilling, extraordinary, and singularly compelling failure. Will’s first love, rendered in the vivid teenage viscera of stolen gin, bruised shins, and weird sex, was an event too momentous for the medium assigned to record it. On the heels of the smashing success of \u003ci\u003eTeens of Denial\u003c\/i\u003e, Car Seat Headrest releases a new version of \u003ci\u003eTwin Fantasy\u003c\/i\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e“It was never a finished work,” Will says, “and it wasn’t until last year that I figured out how to finish it.” He has, now, the benefit of a bigger budget, a full band in fine form, and endless time to tinker. According to him, it took eight months of mixing just to get the drums right. But this is no shallow second take, sanitized in studio and scrubbed of feeling. This is the album he always wanted to make. It sounds the way he always wanted it to sound. It’s been hard, stepping into the shoes of his teenage self, walking back to painful places. There are lyrics he wouldn’t write again, an especially sad song he regards as an albatross. But even as he carries the weight of that younger, wounded Will, he moves forward. He grows. He revises, gently, the songs we love so much. In the album’s final moments, in those apologies to future me’s and you’s, there is more forgiveness than fury. This, Will says, is the most vital difference between the old and the new: he no longer sees his own story as a tragedy.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003col\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eMy Boy (Twin Fantasy)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eBeach Life-In-Death\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eStop Smoking (We Love You)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eSober to Death\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eNervous Young Inhumans\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eBodys\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eCute Thing\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eHigh to Death\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eFamous Prophets (Stars)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eTwin Fantasy (Those Boys)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ol\u003e","brand":"Matador ‎","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47662502052186,"sku":"OLE10922","price":14.95,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1481\/5374\/files\/car-seat-headrest-twin-fantasy_8eb29364-6460-4125-a5bf-e890f4c64abe.jpg?v=1707991057"},{"product_id":"car-seat-headrest-the-scholars-vinyl","title":"Car Seat Headrest: The Scholars (Vinyl 2xLP)","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003ciframe title=\"YouTube video player\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/Z8yOAVb8B_g?si=ufJPg8Q_tJfZKnM6\" height=\"300\" width=\"full\"\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCar Seat Headrest release \u003cem\u003eThe Scholars\u003c\/em\u003e, a bold new rock opera that isn’t just a new chapter for the premiere standard bearers of young internet rockers but also a spiritual rebirth, and the band’s first studio album in five years.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSet at the fictional college campus Parnassus University, the songs on \u003cem\u003eThe Scholars\u003c\/em\u003e are populated with students and staff whose travails illuminate a loose narrative of life, death, and rebirth. Inspired by an apocryphal poem by \"Archbishop Guillermo Guadalupe del Toledo,\" and featuring character designs from Toledo’s friend, the cartoonist Cate Wurtz, the first half of the album focuses on the deep yearning and spiritual crisis of the titular Scholars. They range from the tortured and doubt-filled young playwright Beolco to Devereaux, a person born to religious conservatives who finds themselves desperate for higher guidance.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe second part features a series of epics detailing the clash between the defenders of the classic texts “and the young person who doesn't care about the canon, who is going to tear all of that up, basically,” Toledo says. “And so within this one campus, there becomes a war.” From Shakespeare to Mozart to classical opera, Toledo pulled from the classics when devising the lyrics and story arc of \u003cem\u003eThe Scholars\u003c\/em\u003e, while the music draws, carefully, from classic rock story song cycles such as The Who’s \u003cem\u003eTommy\u003c\/em\u003e and David Bowie’s \u003cem\u003eZiggy Stardust\u003c\/em\u003e. “One thing that can be a struggle with rock operas is that the individual songs kind of get sacrificed for the flow of the plot,” Toledo notes. “I didn't want to sacrifice that to make a very fluid narrative. And so this is sort of a middle ground where each song can be a character and it's like each one is coming out on center stage and they have their song and dance.”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSelf-produced by Toledo and recorded, for a change, mostly in analogue, \u003cem\u003eThe Scholars\u003c\/em\u003e is “definitely the most bottom up of any project that we've done,” says Ives, who was urged by Toledo to take ownership of the guitar work and sound design for the album. “I've started nerding out a lot more in the last couple of years about designing sounds more deliberately, rather than just using your lucky gear and hoping for the best. It was really rewarding, being able to sculpt things a lot more specifically, and being able to layer things in more of a dense way and have more of an active design role in how things come across more than any previous album.”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhile \u003cem\u003eThe Scholars\u003c\/em\u003e has some of the most expansive Car Seat Headrest songs to date, including the nearly 19-minute long ‘Planet Desperation’, and opener ‘CCF (I’m Gonna Stay With You)’, they know how to make each part of the journey compelling, filling the runtimes with unexpected turns and enervating hooks. And moments like the jaunty ‘The Catastrophe (Good Luck With That Man)’ show they haven’t lost their ability to write a short-and-sweet single that chimes like classic ‘60s folk pop, updated for the present. Having gone through their trials, Car Seat Headrest are now ready for the next chapter in their career. It will astonish both longtime supporters and new fans.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhile Car Seat Headrest started as Toledo's solo project, it is now fully a band. “What we've been doing more of in recent years is just taking the pulses of each other. We’ve really been leaning into that sort of cocoon that started off with the pandemic years and just turned into this special space that we were creating all on our own,” says Toledo. “I was coming out of it as a solo project and it always just felt like it was in pieces. There's the album we're working on, and then there's a live show that we're doing, and then there's everything in between. And it didn't really feel to me like things got in sync in an inner feeling way until this record, with that internal communal energy. And it's become that band feeling for me in a much more realised way. That's been a big journey.”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIt is a journey that listeners will want to embark on again and again as they absorb and discover the rich depths and clanging resonances of \u003cem\u003eThe Scholars\u003c\/em\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003col\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan\u003eCCF (I'm Gonna Stay With You)\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan\u003eDevereaux\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan\u003eLady Gay Approximately\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan\u003eThe Catastrophe (Good Luck With That, Man)\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan\u003eEquals\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan\u003eGethsemane\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan\u003eReality\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan\u003ePlanet Desperation\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eTrue\/False Lover\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ol\u003e","brand":"Matador","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51133219438938,"sku":"OLE2132LP","price":29.95,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1481\/5374\/files\/car-seat-headrest-scholars.jpg?v=1746103134"},{"product_id":"car-seat-headrest-the-scholars-cd","title":"Car Seat Headrest: The Scholars (CD)","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003ciframe title=\"YouTube video player\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/Z8yOAVb8B_g?si=ufJPg8Q_tJfZKnM6\" height=\"300\" width=\"full\"\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCar Seat Headrest release \u003cem\u003eThe Scholars\u003c\/em\u003e, a bold new rock opera that isn’t just a new chapter for the premiere standard bearers of young internet rockers but also a spiritual rebirth, and the band’s first studio album in five years.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSet at the fictional college campus Parnassus University, the songs on \u003cem\u003eThe Scholars\u003c\/em\u003e are populated with students and staff whose travails illuminate a loose narrative of life, death, and rebirth. Inspired by an apocryphal poem by \"Archbishop Guillermo Guadalupe del Toledo,\" and featuring character designs from Toledo’s friend, the cartoonist Cate Wurtz, the first half of the album focuses on the deep yearning and spiritual crisis of the titular Scholars. They range from the tortured and doubt-filled young playwright Beolco to Devereaux, a person born to religious conservatives who finds themselves desperate for higher guidance.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe second part features a series of epics detailing the clash between the defenders of the classic texts “and the young person who doesn't care about the canon, who is going to tear all of that up, basically,” Toledo says. “And so within this one campus, there becomes a war.” From Shakespeare to Mozart to classical opera, Toledo pulled from the classics when devising the lyrics and story arc of \u003cem\u003eThe Scholars\u003c\/em\u003e, while the music draws, carefully, from classic rock story song cycles such as The Who’s \u003cem\u003eTommy\u003c\/em\u003e and David Bowie’s \u003cem\u003eZiggy Stardust\u003c\/em\u003e. “One thing that can be a struggle with rock operas is that the individual songs kind of get sacrificed for the flow of the plot,” Toledo notes. “I didn't want to sacrifice that to make a very fluid narrative. And so this is sort of a middle ground where each song can be a character and it's like each one is coming out on center stage and they have their song and dance.”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSelf-produced by Toledo and recorded, for a change, mostly in analogue, \u003cem\u003eThe Scholars\u003c\/em\u003e is “definitely the most bottom up of any project that we've done,” says Ives, who was urged by Toledo to take ownership of the guitar work and sound design for the album. “I've started nerding out a lot more in the last couple of years about designing sounds more deliberately, rather than just using your lucky gear and hoping for the best. It was really rewarding, being able to sculpt things a lot more specifically, and being able to layer things in more of a dense way and have more of an active design role in how things come across more than any previous album.”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhile \u003cem\u003eThe Scholars\u003c\/em\u003e has some of the most expansive Car Seat Headrest songs to date, including the nearly 19-minute long ‘Planet Desperation’, and opener ‘CCF (I’m Gonna Stay With You)’, they know how to make each part of the journey compelling, filling the runtimes with unexpected turns and enervating hooks. And moments like the jaunty ‘The Catastrophe (Good Luck With That Man)’ show they haven’t lost their ability to write a short-and-sweet single that chimes like classic ‘60s folk pop, updated for the present. Having gone through their trials, Car Seat Headrest are now ready for the next chapter in their career. It will astonish both longtime supporters and new fans.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhile Car Seat Headrest started as Toledo's solo project, it is now fully a band. “What we've been doing more of in recent years is just taking the pulses of each other. We’ve really been leaning into that sort of cocoon that started off with the pandemic years and just turned into this special space that we were creating all on our own,” says Toledo. “I was coming out of it as a solo project and it always just felt like it was in pieces. There's the album we're working on, and then there's a live show that we're doing, and then there's everything in between. And it didn't really feel to me like things got in sync in an inner feeling way until this record, with that internal communal energy. And it's become that band feeling for me in a much more realised way. That's been a big journey.”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIt is a journey that listeners will want to embark on again and again as they absorb and discover the rich depths and clanging resonances of \u003cem\u003eThe Scholars\u003c\/em\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003col\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan\u003eCCF (I'm Gonna Stay With You)\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan\u003eDevereaux\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan\u003eLady Gay Approximately\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan\u003eThe Catastrophe (Good Luck With That, Man)\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan\u003eEquals\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan\u003eGethsemane\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan\u003eReality\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan\u003ePlanet Desperation\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eTrue\/False Lover\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ol\u003e","brand":"Matador","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51133300998490,"sku":"OLE2132CD","price":12.95,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1481\/5374\/files\/car-seat-headrest-scholars.jpg?v=1746103134"},{"product_id":"car-seat-headrest-teens-of-style-cd","title":"Car Seat Headrest: Teens Of Style (CD)","description":"\u003ciframe width=\"full\" height=\"300\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/w2l8idGC-Uo?si=0BbD5A6tg1AT2RX7\" title=\"YouTube video player\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis prolific artist (ne Will Toledo) comes to Matador having already crafted an 11-album catalog of staggering depth, all self-released on Bandcamp, which has gained him an obsessive following and over 25,000 downloads - all without the muscle of a manager, label, agent, or publicist - until now. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCar Seat Headrest began in 2010 in Will Toledo's hometown of Leesburg, Virginia. Needing a place of solitude (and soundproofing) where he could record vocals undisturbed, a 17-year-old Toledo set up shop in the family car. Toledo's catalogue is sharp, literary, and culturally omnivorous as it touches upon youth and death, love and depression, drunken parties and 2nd century theologians. Ever surprising, his lyrical imagery ranges from playful to sexually frank to sorrowful, often within the same song.  After relocating to the Seattle suburbs in 2014, Toledo assembled a lineup with bassist Ethan Ives and drummer Andrew Katz. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eTeens of Style\u003c\/em\u003e is the first Car Seat Headrest album recorded with a full band, and the sound is vibrant and powerful, with a wide stylistic range. On \u003cem\u003eTeens of Style\u003c\/em\u003e, Toledo has taken material from the first three years of the band's existence and reworked it to generate some of the most realized arrangements to date. Drawing material from \u003cem\u003e3\u003c\/em\u003e (2010), \u003cem\u003eMy Back Is Killing Me Baby\u003c\/em\u003e (2011), and \u003cem\u003eMonomania\u003c\/em\u003e (2012), \u003cem\u003eTeens of Style\u003c\/em\u003e provides a concise overview of the band's many sonic and emotional facets, with the songs ranging from electronic psychedelia to punky anthems to melancholic acoustic numbers. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe longest track on \u003cem\u003eTeens of Style\u003c\/em\u003e, 'Times to Die,' is just under seven minutes, applying breakbeat cut-ups and 'Low Rider' horns to a groove-driven neo-psych jam with lyrics about Judaism, Hinduism, and the record business. Similarly, 'Maud Gone' is a wistful 60s-inspired pop number paying homage to Yeats's unrequited love, while the intricate party track 'Los Borrachos' borrows its title from the Diego Velasquez painting. Car Seat Headrest's conceptual ambition and stunning songwriting has been apparent since its early days of laptop recording, the scale of Toledo's vision going far beyond the constricting lo-fi term.  Now on his Matador Records debut, \u003cem\u003eTeens of Style\u003c\/em\u003e, we witness Toledo presenting his intricate ideas with more clarity and refinement than ever, delivering an enthralling collection of songs destined for wide acclaim.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003col\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eSunburned Shirts\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eThe Drum\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eSomething Soon\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eNo Passion\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eTimes To Die\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003ePsst, Teenagers, Take Off Your Clo\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eStrangers\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eMaud Gone\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eLos Borrachos (I Don't Have Any Hope Left, But The Weather Is Nice)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eBad Role Models, Old Idols Exhumed (Psst, Teenagers, Put Your Clothes Back O)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eOh! Starving\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ol\u003e","brand":"Matador ‎","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":53145368002906,"sku":"OLE10882","price":14.95,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1481\/5374\/products\/car-seat-headrest-teens-style.jpg?v=1652199491"},{"product_id":"car-seat-headrest-teen-of-denial-joe-s-story-cd","title":"Pre-Order 16\/10\/26 - Car Seat Headrest: Teen Of Denial - Joe’s Story (CD)","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003ciframe title=\"YouTube video player\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/YW3zUh9xAYo?si=YdCuL39M-ToE09sq\" height=\"300\" width=\"full\"\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThis item is available for pre-order only and will be dispatched on or around its release date (17\/07\/26)\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eTeen Of Denial - Joe’s Story\u003c\/em\u003e is a freshly reimagined take on Car Seat Headrest’s beloved breakout, \u003cem\u003eTeens Of Denial\u003c\/em\u003e, now celebrating its 10th anniversary.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOn the original album, Toledo often used the name “Joe” as a pseudonym – a sly homage to Daniel Johnston. Revisiting \u003cem\u003eTeens\u003c\/em\u003e in the run-up to its 10th birthday, he felt called to give Joe a unique backstory and began tweaking the album to tell that tale.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe group returned to the studio with \u003cem\u003eTeens\u003c\/em\u003e producer Steve Fisk to update accordingly – tweaking lyrics, revising arrangements, and recording new songs in the “Denial-style,” including ‘Optimistic Son” and the anthemic ‘Joe Drives Again’. The result retains \u003cem\u003eTeens\u003c\/em\u003e’ dark edge and youthful cynicism, but allows a bit of hard-won compassion into the mix.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFrom Will Toledo:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSometime last year, it was suggested to me that we do something for the ten-year anniversary of \u003cem\u003eTeens Of Denial\u003c\/em\u003e, so I started looking back on the album to see what we might do. In spite of some of its songs being a regular part of my life for the past decade, it wasn’t a record I’d thought much about as a whole since it came out. Most of the songs I’d come up with over a two-year period at the end of my college days, when I was struggling a lot with cynicism and misplaced aggression. But by the time the songs were done, I was living in Washington, Car Seat Headrest was a full band with a record label, and in spite of the turmoil of the writing process, the final album was pretty enjoyable for everyone to work on.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis time, looking back at the songs, I started to feel like there was a story being told through the album, though I’d never imagined it as being a narrative work. On \u003cem\u003eHi, How Are You?\u003c\/em\u003e Daniel Johnston had used the name “Joe” in the titles of a few tracks –“No More Pushing Joe Around”, “Keep Punching Joe” – as a sort of joke, a stand-in for himself. I borrowed the idea, and the name, for titling songs on \u003cem\u003eDenial\u003c\/em\u003e. This time, I started thinking - who is Joe? And how do the songs, in the way they’re sequenced on the album, reflect what he’s going through?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAs I started asking this question, a story emerged with startling wholeness and clarity, like finding the foundations of an ancient city while digging in my backyard. As I kept digging, certain songs from the original album fell by the wayside, as they seemed misplaced in this new context; others asked for new lyrics, to fully give birth to the story contained in the music.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe resulting work feels more like the album \u003cem\u003eTeens Of Denial\u003c\/em\u003e was meant to be. When you’re writing from a dark space, it’s hard to have perspective on where you’re at. This time, I could pull from memories of that darkness, and use the distance and additional perspective of ten years of life to shed a fuller light on the experience. Joe is a character going through some of what I experienced, and some of his own problems.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTelling his story, and not just my own impressions of life at the end of the teen years, brought a new level of compassion and wholeness to the album. It gave us the opportunity to write new material in “Denial style”, embracing a snappy and simple(ish) rock aesthetic, and in an additional blessing, we were able to team up once with Steve Fisk, a joy and inspiration to get back into the studio with after ten years.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWe mixed the material at his house in Tacoma, and were constantly amazed at the lack of divide between past and present, as we’d punch in vocal overdubs ten years later into the same gear, hearing my voice now running alongside a 2015 Will. For someone coming across this album or this band for the first time, this is how they’d hear the record, not as a relic of the past but as a new piece. It was immensely rewarding to experience that on our side.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFor anyone familiar with \u003cem\u003eTeens\u003c\/em\u003e, comparisons with the original will be inevitable, but I do hope that as much as possible, people can come to this album on its own terms, approaching it as a teen, hearing the music and story for the first time. I believe music is an ongoing story, and albums don’t always do justice to its dynamic, ongoing nature.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhat gives it life is the new ears that hear it, and the new hearts that engage with it. I’m so grateful that this is a work that people have kept coming to, and I hope that this presentation does them honor with a fresh offering to the conversation. We’ve known that “it doesn’t have to be like this”; now we can wonder - “what it if were like this?”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003col\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eFill In The Blank\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eVincent\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eDestroyed By Hippie Powers\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e(Joe Gets Kicked Out of School For Using) Drugs With Friends (But Says This Isn't A Problem)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eOptimistic Son\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eDrunk Drivers\/Killer Whales\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e1937 State Park\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eJoe Drives Again\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eCosmic Hero\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eThe Ravenous House\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eConnect the Dots (Song of Secretariat)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eJoe Goes to School\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ol\u003e","brand":"Matador","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":54201871565146,"sku":"OLE2247CD","price":12.95,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1481\/5374\/files\/car-seat-headrest-teen-denial-joes-story.jpg?v=1779810423"},{"product_id":"car-seat-headrest-teen-denial-joe-s-story-vinyl","title":"Pre-Order 16\/10\/26 - Car Seat Headrest: Teen Of Denial - Joe’s Story (Vinyl 2xLP)","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003ciframe title=\"YouTube video player\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/YW3zUh9xAYo?si=YdCuL39M-ToE09sq\" height=\"300\" width=\"full\"\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThis item is available for pre-order only and will be dispatched on or around its release date (17\/07\/26)\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eTeen Of Denial - Joe’s Story\u003c\/em\u003e is a freshly reimagined take on Car Seat Headrest’s beloved breakout, \u003cem\u003eTeens Of Denial\u003c\/em\u003e, now celebrating its 10th anniversary.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOn the original album, Toledo often used the name “Joe” as a pseudonym – a sly homage to Daniel Johnston. Revisiting \u003cem\u003eTeens\u003c\/em\u003e in the run-up to its 10th birthday, he felt called to give Joe a unique backstory and began tweaking the album to tell that tale.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe group returned to the studio with \u003cem\u003eTeens\u003c\/em\u003e producer Steve Fisk to update accordingly – tweaking lyrics, revising arrangements, and recording new songs in the “Denial-style,” including ‘Optimistic Son” and the anthemic ‘Joe Drives Again’. The result retains \u003cem\u003eTeens\u003c\/em\u003e’ dark edge and youthful cynicism, but allows a bit of hard-won compassion into the mix.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFrom Will Toledo:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSometime last year, it was suggested to me that we do something for the ten-year anniversary of \u003cem\u003eTeens Of Denial\u003c\/em\u003e, so I started looking back on the album to see what we might do. In spite of some of its songs being a regular part of my life for the past decade, it wasn’t a record I’d thought much about as a whole since it came out. Most of the songs I’d come up with over a two-year period at the end of my college days, when I was struggling a lot with cynicism and misplaced aggression. But by the time the songs were done, I was living in Washington, Car Seat Headrest was a full band with a record label, and in spite of the turmoil of the writing process, the final album was pretty enjoyable for everyone to work on.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis time, looking back at the songs, I started to feel like there was a story being told through the album, though I’d never imagined it as being a narrative work. On \u003cem\u003eHi, How Are You?\u003c\/em\u003e Daniel Johnston had used the name “Joe” in the titles of a few tracks –“No More Pushing Joe Around”, “Keep Punching Joe” – as a sort of joke, a stand-in for himself. I borrowed the idea, and the name, for titling songs on \u003cem\u003eDenial\u003c\/em\u003e. This time, I started thinking - who is Joe? And how do the songs, in the way they’re sequenced on the album, reflect what he’s going through?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAs I started asking this question, a story emerged with startling wholeness and clarity, like finding the foundations of an ancient city while digging in my backyard. As I kept digging, certain songs from the original album fell by the wayside, as they seemed misplaced in this new context; others asked for new lyrics, to fully give birth to the story contained in the music.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe resulting work feels more like the album \u003cem\u003eTeens Of Denial\u003c\/em\u003e was meant to be. When you’re writing from a dark space, it’s hard to have perspective on where you’re at. This time, I could pull from memories of that darkness, and use the distance and additional perspective of ten years of life to shed a fuller light on the experience. Joe is a character going through some of what I experienced, and some of his own problems.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTelling his story, and not just my own impressions of life at the end of the teen years, brought a new level of compassion and wholeness to the album. It gave us the opportunity to write new material in “Denial style”, embracing a snappy and simple(ish) rock aesthetic, and in an additional blessing, we were able to team up once with Steve Fisk, a joy and inspiration to get back into the studio with after ten years.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWe mixed the material at his house in Tacoma, and were constantly amazed at the lack of divide between past and present, as we’d punch in vocal overdubs ten years later into the same gear, hearing my voice now running alongside a 2015 Will. For someone coming across this album or this band for the first time, this is how they’d hear the record, not as a relic of the past but as a new piece. It was immensely rewarding to experience that on our side.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFor anyone familiar with \u003cem\u003eTeens\u003c\/em\u003e, comparisons with the original will be inevitable, but I do hope that as much as possible, people can come to this album on its own terms, approaching it as a teen, hearing the music and story for the first time. I believe music is an ongoing story, and albums don’t always do justice to its dynamic, ongoing nature.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhat gives it life is the new ears that hear it, and the new hearts that engage with it. I’m so grateful that this is a work that people have kept coming to, and I hope that this presentation does them honor with a fresh offering to the conversation. We’ve known that “it doesn’t have to be like this”; now we can wonder - “what it if were like this?”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003col\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eFill In The Blank\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eVincent\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eDestroyed By Hippie Powers\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e(Joe Gets Kicked Out of School For Using) Drugs With Friends (But Says This Isn't A Problem)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eOptimistic Son\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eDrunk Drivers\/Killer Whales\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e1937 State Park\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eJoe Drives Again\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eCosmic Hero\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eThe Ravenous House\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eConnect the Dots (Song of Secretariat)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eJoe Goes to School\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ol\u003e","brand":"Matador","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":54201910722906,"sku":"OLE2247LP","price":36.95,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1481\/5374\/files\/car-seat-headrest-teen-denial-joes-story.jpg?v=1779810423"}],"url":"https:\/\/freebirdrecords.com\/collections\/car-seat-headrest.oembed","provider":"Freebird Records","version":"1.0","type":"link"}