SoCal ska-pop-punks Half Past Two have announced a new album, Talk Is Killing Me, due April 19 via Bad Time Records (pre-order). The album was produced and mixed by We Are The Union’s Reade Wolcott, who also contributed guitar, percussion, keys, vocals, and co-writing. It’s their first time album for Bad Time, following the band’s inclusion on the 2020 comp Ska Against Racism that Bad Time co-released. Here’s what Bad Time label head (and Kill Lincoln vocalist) Mike Sosinski says about the new album:
I will admit something to you right now dear email reader… I was not always a Half Past Two fan. While I certainly always respected their technical proficiency and commitment to the scene, anyone who follows BTR knows I lean more into the ‘heavier’ more ‘aggressive’ side of ska punk. When a band calls themselves ‘bubblegum ska’ and hails from Orange County, I put my guard up.
Reader: let me say this clearly. I was wrong. This new album hit me HARD, and smacked some sense into me. This band’s pop sensibilities (ie: ability to get a hook stuck in your head for damn months) are unmatched in the genre, and this new album has them stretching their legs into new territory… it’s more aggressive than the band’s previous catalogue and certainly more ‘grown up’, but it still focuses on the joy of making poppy ska music wile lyrically dealing with with heartbreak, personal trauma, and trying to re-discover happiness. It’s personal, it’s gritty, it’s fun, it’s real, and it’s a triumph. And if “Dominoes” isn’t stuck in your head right now then you haven’t listened to it yet.
Let me shout this as loud as I possibly can… I am now a huge f*cking Half Past Two fan. If you also made the mistake of underestimating them in the past… give them another shot. I guarantee you will find something to love about this album.
I’ll echo Mike in saying that lead single “Dominoes” is indeed a little darker and more aggressive for HP2 but also just as infectious as anything they’ve released. It comes with a video by Rae Mystic and you can check that out below.
Half Past Two are doing their first Northeast tour ever this spring, including a show at Brooklyn’s Saint Vitus on April 18 with BTR labelmates We Are The Union (who are headlining), Devon Kay & the Solutions, and The Pomps. All dates (including two with The Suicide Machines) are listed below.
Tracklist
1. Barrier For Entry
2. Lie To You
3. Dominoes
4. In My Head
5. Curse The Universe
6. I Don’t Dream Anymore
7. Talk Is Killing Me
8. Give and Take
9. Our Playlist (feat. Scott Klopfenstein)
10. Never Saw Me
11. Isolated Days
12. Out Of Time
We Are The Union, Half Past Two, Devon Kay & The Solutions, and The Pomps — 2024 Tour Dates
4/18 – Brooklyn, NY Saint Vitus
4/19 – Washington, DC Union Stage*
4/20 – Bensalem, PA This Is Not Croydown Fest*
4/21 – Boston, MA Crystal Ballroom
*The Suicide Machines headlining
