All photos courtesy of Chanel Beads
“All music is folk music, and folks have been just as annoying as forever,” Shane Lavers of Chanel Beads told Interview over email just days before announcing his second album. The highly anticipated follow-up, Your Day Will Come—which, confusingly, shares the same name as his first record—finds Laver’s continuing to explore his loose, searching take on folk. Out June 26 on Jagjaguwar, the album isn’t annoying, but it does play like it’s designed to induce spiritual psychosis. The songs are full of clashing instrumentation and subdued lyrics delicately packed with emotional conflict; melodic chaos that feels poised to spill over into your real life at any moment.
Before you can get your hands on the full thing this summer, you can preview two of the tracks now, “The Coward Forgets His Nightmare” and “Song for the Messenger,” the latter accompanied by a glitchy music video (which features both a chandelier and a snake). To celebrate the announcement, we interrogated Lavers about his food habits, nervous system, and what lurks in his voice memos.
———
What’s in your voice recordings?
When I wrote this second record Your Day Will Come, I made a recording anytime I passed running water. Which was a lot of sewers draining. Any pipes draining fascinate me. Plastic pipes that get fucked up by DRAINO confuse me. When is it your problem to deal with? I like to take responsibility for the world in the abstract. One day I will for real.
Is there anything you wish you could unlearn?
When I wrote this second record Your Day Will Come, I realized there’s no going back.
The last place you ate in NYC?
When I wrote this second record Your Day Will Come, I drank a lot of ginger heavy smoothies. Someone told me pomegranate juice helps the voice and throat, but it kinda made mine feel acidic and gravely. I was also drinking alcohol a lot, lots of nicotine and not sleeping from other shit. Talking loud in crowded bars fucks your voice up. I was doing that a lot and it made me resentful of friendship and community, which is something I should cherish.
Where does your mind go during a performance?
When I wrote this second record Your Day Will Come, I was screaming songs that I had recorded much quieter. Channeling and living in angst can be poison but it is also reaffirming of life and I am blessed to be around people who seem to be obsessed with affirming life.
Favorite YouTube channel right now?
When I wrote this second record Your Day Will Come, I remembered this channel Kdeb cooking.
Hottest musical take?
When I wrote this second record Your Day Will Come, I didn’t give a shit about takes. Dedication comes with a desire to contribute and a gratitude to be involved. All music is folk music and folks have been just as annoying as forever.
What’s the last dream you had?
When I wrote this second record Your Day Will Come, I had the same reoccurring dreams i’ve always had. That someone who passed away is alive again and all that pain is gone.
When do you get nervous?
When I wrote this second record Your Day Will Come, I decided all energy can be beneficial. The world is nothing but energy. Nothing to fear.
What are you most proud of?
When I wrote this second record Your Day Will Come, I felt pride that people would agree to work on and contribute to this shit. Maya, Zach, Tchad, Isaac, Anastasia, Mari, Adam, Marilu, Bella, Nick, Robbie, Andy etc.
What did you have for breakfast?
When I wrote this second record Your Day Will Come, I ate later in the day. When you are sick you crave soup.
Why can’t it be magic all the time?
When I wrote this second record Your Day Will Come, I was thinking, I don’t know, go for a walk if you think that way. I also thought about how my hopeless thinking was negating my love. And that my love was negating my hopeless thinking. One thought seemed to annihilate the other, but I kept having both.
