Preoccupations 

After 13 years, 400+ shows, and a fair share of chaos (read: broken bones, stolen gear, lost friends, and hearing damage), Preoccupations continue to reinvent themselves. Their new album ‘Ill at Ease’ sometimes sounds like the soundtrack to a ruined planet, other times like a glimpse into an unknown future. Always dark, intense, and captivating.

The band formed in 2012 under the name Viet Cong and broke through with the raw and driving track Continental Shelf. Before that, frontman Matt Flegel and drummer Mike Wallace were part of Women, an influential post-punk band known for cult classics like ‘Public Strain’. Following controversy over the name Viet Cong, the band rebranded as Preoccupations and have kept evolving ever since, without ever losing their edge.

‘Ill at Ease’ is their fifth album, and perhaps their most ambitious yet: filled with existential questions, dystopian visions, and unexpected beauty.