The Slaps, recently shared new single “Fool,” a track off their upcoming album Mudglimmer, available November 8th, via Fire Talk Records. “Fool” deals with themes of drug abuse and the mangled sources of our society’s relationship with “relevant” information: the news. Demo’d with Dexter Webb, Indigo de Souza’s close friend and collaborator, it’s an epic, runaway piece with un-auto tuned harmonies that blast you off through time and space. The Slaps are on tour in support of Mudglimmer throughout the fall, full dates below.

Of “Fool,” the band, including guitarist Rand Kelly, bassist Ramsey Bell, and drummer Josh Resing — “The flattening of innocence versus ignorance. The opening line draws from the Howard Finster quote, ‘Worst kind of a fool is a fool who don’t know he is a fool when he is fooled.'”

The Slaps formed in Chicago at DePaul University, and debuted with 2017’s Susan’s Room, a scrappy and surf-y rock project recorded via Garageband at Rand’s parents’ place. Their local profile grew quickly. Subsequent EPs A and B — recorded, for the first time, in proper studios — did well enough to enable them to embark on summer tours of the midwest, striking a hazy and moody middle ground between The Strokes’ tightly wound garage rock and Crumb’s jazzily arranged psychedelia.

The 2020 COVID pandemic re-shuffled the deck, as the band moved to Lexington, KY to keep rent cheap while they toured four months out of the year. They recorded 2022’s Tomato Tree and got ready to hit the road. Hardship followed, including several friends passing away and the cancellation of a major tour.

It was a challenging time, but one that strengthened the band’s artistic resolve. “We had to commit, to each other and to ourselves,” recounts Rand. Their conclusion: “If we’re going to be out here and risk our well-being, we can’t do it for any other reason than for us and our expression.”

Pulling inspiration from experimental principles espoused by a college class they took called Improv Scratch Orchestra, taught by Jeffrey Kowalkowski (himself a staple of Chicago’s experimental jazz and post-rock scenes), The Slaps followed their muse to odd but rewarding places. In 2023, they recorded and released Pathless, an entirely improvised release recorded at the legendary Experimental Sound Studio in Chicago, a hub of the city’s rich free jazz scene and home of the Sun Ra / El Saturn Collection. Around the same time, they were writing and recording This is My First Day At Drawing, a reflective collection influenced by traditional folk and country songwriting.

The Slaps
Mudglimmer
Tracklist
Fire Talk records

Mudglimmer
Flip
Filthy Sex Maneuvers
Compromised Dirt
Bunny
Fool
Forward
King
To London
Soul’d n Settled
The Thaw

The Slaps 2024 Tour Dates

11/05/24: Grand Rapids, MI @ Pyramid Scheme
11/06/24: Toronto, ON @ Velvet Underground
11/07/24: Montreal, QC @ Cabaret Fouf
11/08/24: Portland, ME @ Oxbow Brewing
11/09/24: Boston, MA @ Warehouse XI
11/10/24: New York, NY @ Knitting Factory
11/12/24: Pittsburgh, PA @ Club Cafe
11/14/24: Detroit, MI @ Loving Touch
11/15/24: Indianapolis, IN @ Healer

Pre-order Mudglimmer by The Slaps HERE