Tom Higgenson and brothers Darren and Eric Vorel of TLB // Courtesy of Cal Engel
VIDEO: A new album is on the way for TLB, but first the band goes on ‘Holiday’
Founded on a healthy dose of angsty breakup vibes and a cheerful loathing of love, Chicago-area punk band TLB is on the verge of releasing its sophomore album, “Blood and Sand,” a fun and electrifying following up to 2018’s self-titled debut.
You have to admit, 2020 has been hard on a lot of us.
Take a short break with “Holiday,” the upbeat new single and video from TLB, a Ramones-inspired punk band started in 2013 by brothers Darren and Eric Vorel and Willowbrook High School friend Tom Higgenson of the Plain White T’s.
While TLB’s self-titled debut album may have touched on breakups in clever and funny ways — alright, obsessed over them, with titles such as “We Are Getting Back together in 2000 Never” and “I’ve Been Doing Fun (Expletive) Without You” — the band transcends that to explore different facets of the relationship on the new track.
“‘Holiday’ is almost like the pre-breakup song. It’s like, ‘Oh, we’re kind of on the rocks. Let’s try to fix it,'” Higgenson said. “But it’s still a bit like, you know, we’re still on the rocks. … There’s no ‘Things are great right now and I’m in love songs.'”
“That’s never gonna be what we sing,” Darren added.
“I think the point is to have fun, for us to have as much fun as we are,” Darren said. “This new record has a lot less ‘Woe is me.’ … We didn’t break the formula, but we did add in a little bit more fun, I’d say more optimistic.”
The song, out now on all major streaming platforms, and its accompanying video are a preview of what’s to come with the new album, “Blood and Sand,” due out Oct. 31.
“I do feel like music is very powerful for some people to help heal, to help get through tough times,” Higgenson said. “So we love doing what we’re doing. And … we know exactly what we are as a band. We know what we sound like, we know what we sing about. … OK, none of us have really gone through a breakup recently, you know, but we all remember the last one.”
• TLB’s new album “Blood and Sand” is available for preorder, along with other band merch, at humanswerehere.com.
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