Routine is comprised of Annie Truscott and Melina Duterte, the duo will release their debut EP, And Other Things, on November 20th via Friends Of Friends/Dead Oceans. Ahead of the EP’s release later this week, Routine shares a new song entitled “Calm and Collected” alongside a stunning music video filmed throughout Joshua Tree, where the EP was also written and recorded over the course of a month during the COVID-19 lockdown. The duo say, “We have both been wanting to collaborate with our good friend Eleanor for a while and the timing just lined up perfectly. Eleanor makes the most beautiful videos and we wanted something kind of dreamy and organic. When we scheduled the shoot in Joshua Tree, we didn’t realize that there would be a full moon.

Routine finds Truscott, who plays bass in Chastity Belt, and Duterte, the mastermind behind Jay Som, trying new roles. For And Other Things, Truscott wrote the bulk of the material and sings, while Duterte used the project as an opportunity to, in her words, “take the backseat,” as accompanist, producer, and engineer. The product of a canceled tour that would have found the couple on the road together for the first time, And Other Things is a beautiful, collaborative outcome of an incredibly challenging time.

Routine
And Other Things
Tracklisting
Dead Oceans/Friends Of Friends

1. Cady Road
2. Numb Enough
3. Song 5
4. And Other Things
5. Calm and Collected

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit the U.S., Chastity Belt’s Annie Truscott descended into a state of mourning. Her plan had been to join her partner, Jay Som’s Melina Duterte, as violinist on tour, a privilege rarely afforded since both maintain busy road schedules, and for Truscott, the prospect of spending most of the year in a van wasn’t met with exhaustion so much as exhilaration. At long last, she’d be making a living playing music, no side hustle needed. The cancellation of the tour represented a sidelined dream. Routine was born of this disappointment. Like the phoenix rising from the ashes, Truscott and Duterte’s collaborative project offers a glimpse of the creative possibilities that can emerge from a state of defeat.

Duterte describes the making of the EP as “seamless.” In the mornings, Truscott sat outside of the cabin in the not-yet-blazing sun and worked out chord progressions on guitar while Duterte slept in. Staring out at the horizon, Truscott could see a smattering of houses and the sharp outline of a mountain range, but overall the property felt remote, far removed from home in Los Angeles. On long walks Truscott admired the recently bloomed spring flowers and pondered the legacy of friendships and experiences that made her. “I spend a lot of my time thinking about the people who’ve impacted my life,” she says. “Routine gave me an opportunity to explore those relationships through music.”

Pre-order And Other Things now here