Arms Aloft are a punk band from the battleground state of Wisconsin, and the left-leaning band made the decision to surprise-release their new EP, Red Lanterns – The Third EP–their first new music in eight years–on Election Day. Guitarist/vocalist Seth Gile says:
We thought we’d be cute and surprise drop a new record, on Election Day. And that was pretty fun for about 16 hours, until Election Night did a big, “hold my beer”, to us. It’s a set of 4 songs, which already came out feeling pretty mournful. Now, unfortunately, maybe more appropriately so. Self-imposed ironic release date aside, we’re really thrilled with the EP and I promise there are some moments of hope for a better world, tucked-in there too. It’s not all doom and gloom.
On Twitter, the band added after the election, “So you keep on watching out for people from marginalized communities; you keep voting with where you spend your money and on what; you do what you can to democratize your workplace; and you hope (and work) for a better world, for everyone. Tonight was never going to fix things. And free Palestine.”
We’re now premiering the video for “Fear and Loathing at a Bloomburg Terminal,” an animated lyric video fueled by ’90s computer vibes, and it’s got a timely, topical message about the state of the world that hits especially hard this week. Check it out below. The EP is out via Red Scare.
Arms Aloft have one upcoming show, a hometown release show at Abraxas in Eau Claire, WI on November 16.