Cross Record has released her new single/video, “I Release You.” The track is off her self-titled album, available August 2nd via Ba Da Bing Records (Katie Von Schleicher, Julie Byrne).  “I Release You” contemplates how life’s transitions can demand challenging reappraisals of oneself. The video, directed by Cross, presents various people interpretively dancing to the song.

The Cross Record live band – comprised of Emily Cross (vocals), Taft Mashburn(vocals/keyboard), Greer Culbertson (vocals), Andrew Hulett (bass/synth), and Andrew Stevens (percussion) – will tour North America this fall. Additionally, in select cities, Cross will be leading a Living Funeral ceremony – a three-hour long experience which focuses on turning towards one’s own mortality. Participants experience their own memorial, are told to write their last words, and then are led through a death visualization. All dates are listed below.

From Emily Cross

“The song is about struggling to let go of an identity you’ve built up around yourself and trying to see a life beyond it,” says Cross. “It’s also about moving ahead with intuition, even if you have no idea what the ‘right thing to do’ is or means. I was in a state of utter confusion, but somewhere in myself I saw the path I needed to travel, and I knew that eventually when I arrived back to Earth, I and (we) would grow under the right conditions. In this video, I was seeking expression of the song through my friends, who hadn’t heard the song yet. Thanks to them, who moved beautifully to it.” 

Across the album, Cross reconciles her present state of being with her experiences of the past few years. Themes of departure and separation were inspired by her new role as a death doula, which helps clients navigate decisions and hardships at the end of life. Cross’s work in helping others face their greatest fears inhabits the same space as her art, which has always explored the metaphysical in the everyday. Her songs are introspective and observe the transcendental – framing death as a spiritual departure and considering the fragility and resilience of the mind. The eerie experience of listening to Cross Record and the unsettling sense of songs slipping from coherent grasp share these same sensibilities.

Cross Record
Tour Dates

Wed. Sept. 4 – Marfa, TX @ Bar Nadar Pool & Grill
Thu. Sept. 5 – Phoenix, AX @ Lunchbox
Fri. Sept. 6 – Los Angeles, CA @ Bootleg Theater
Sun. Sept. 8 – San Francisco, CA @ Cafe Du Nord
Tue. Sept. 10 – Portland, OR @ Holocene
Mon. Sept. 11 – Astoria, OR @ Anita
Thu. Sept. 12 – Seattle, WA @ Fremont Abbey
Sun. Sept. 15 – Minneapolis, MN @ Moon Palace Books
Tue. Sept. 17 – Chicago, IL @ Schubas Tavern
Wed. Sept. 18 – Cincinnati, OH @ Northside Tavern
Fri. Sept. 20 – Fishkill, NY @ Likeminds Festival
Sun. Sept. 22 – Beacon, NY @ Quinn’s
Mon. Sept. 23 – Kingston, NY @ Tubby’s
Tue. Sept. 24 – Brooklyn, NY @ Trans-Pecos
Wed. Sept. 25 – Washington, DC @ Songbyrd
Fri. Sept. 27 – Richmond, VA @ Space Litter
Sun. Sept. 29 – Atlanta, GA @ The Earl

Living Funeral
Dates

Wed. Sept. 4 – Marfa, TX
Sat. Sept. 7 – Los Angeles, CA
Mon. Sept. 9 – San Francisco, CA
Tue. Sept. 10 – Portland, OR
Thu. Sept. 12 – Seattle, WA
Sat. Sept. 14 – Fargo, ND
Sun. Sept. 16 – Chicago, IL
Sat. Sept. 21 – Fishkill, NY
Tue. Sept. 24 – New York, NY
Sat. Sept. 28 – Durham, NC
Mon. Sept. 30 – New Orleans, LA