{"id":28370,"date":"2018-02-28T17:15:13","date_gmt":"2018-02-28T22:15:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?p=28370"},"modified":"2019-06-02T19:05:53","modified_gmt":"2019-06-02T23:05:53","slug":"beach-fossils-cold-beat-north-highlands-members-unite-hit-bargain-announce-debut-lp-potential-maximizer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?p=28370","title":{"rendered":"Hit Bargain announce debut LP &#8216;Potential Maximizer&#8217;"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>LA&#8217;s Hit Bargain have become the first band from outside Canada to sign to Buzz Records, and have announced their debut LP, &#8216;Potential Maximizer,&#8217; which will be released on the label on May 11th. Comprised of members of The Pains of Being Pure at Heart, Cold Beat, North Highlands and Beach Fossils, the band have been trafficking in a confrontational style of hardcore influenced post-punk for a little under 2 years, and the album is the follow up to their well-received 2016 self-titled EP, which received positive attention from outlets like Noisey, Stereogum, BrooklynVegan and FADER.<\/p>\n<p>As part of the album announcement the band are providing the first preview of the album in\u00a0the form of it&#8217;s first single, <em>Capitulate<\/em>. The track delivers on the blistering intensity promised by the band&#8217;s earlier release, functioning as a statement of intent as it\u00a0flashes the band&#8217;s dynamic range at break neck tempos\u00a0behind vocalist Nora Singh&#8217;s\u00a0interrogation of consent\u00a0in the context of LA&#8217;s queer scene.<\/p>\n<p>Singh elaborates on the song&#8217;s subject matter:\u00a0<em>&#8220;This is a song about the ambiguities of consent,&#8221; <\/em>says Singh.\u00a0<em>&#8220;I wrote it in response to the real experiences of a friend navigating sex, relationships and their own emerging queerness in L.A. It predates any hashtag or recent public scandal, but it is a part of the same conversation. What I wish for everyone is to find an intersection of pleasure, bodily integrity and respect&#8211;without abuse or shame&#8221;\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Take a listen via YouTube below.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"embed-youtube\" style=\"text-align:center; display: block;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"youtube-player\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/Urg5eiOMDK8?version=3&#038;rel=1&#038;showsearch=0&#038;showinfo=1&#038;iv_load_policy=1&#038;fs=1&#038;hl=en-CA&#038;autohide=2&#038;wmode=transparent\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" style=\"border:0;\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts allow-same-origin allow-popups allow-presentation allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox\"><\/iframe><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Formed in the\u00a0disorienting, dehydrated in-between spaces of Los Angeles,\u00a0Hit Bargain\u00a0are an art punk outfit determined to create new\u00a0shapes from\u00a0the building blocks of a\u00a0well-worn genre. Comprised of Nora Singh (vocals) Mike Barron (guitar and vocals), Anton Hochheim (drums), and Sean Monaghan (bass), current and former members of\u00a0The Pains of Being Pure at Heart, Cold Beat, North Highlands, These Are Powers\u00a0and\u00a0Beach Fossils, the band\u00a0apply their considerable pedigree to crafting a sound that is at once inventive, cerebral and rawly engaging.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Named for a now shuttered Echo Park 99 cent store, Hit Bargain\u00a0was\u00a0formed after Singh was introduced to Hochheim and Barron by a mutual friend. They quickly found notoriety\u00a0in LA as a result of their\u00a0unique style of performance &#8211; an intense and physical blend of hardcore and performance art, in part inspired by the mid-century European avant garde Situationist art movement, and perhaps best encapsulated by a series of shows during which Singh\u00a0<\/span>performed standing on the head and torso of a half-naked trampling fetishist.<\/p>\n<p>They released their self-titled debut EP\u00a0in late 2016\u00a0&#8211; a tightly composed compendium of LA (Black Flag, The Adolescents) and DC (Bad Brains, Fugazi) punk influences loosely conceptualized around themes of gender, power and the film\u00a0<em>Die Hard.<\/em>\u00a0With the release the band\u00a0began to build momentum outside their hometown, receiving praise from outlets like\u00a0Stereogum,\u00a0BrooklynVegan,\u00a0FADER, who hailed Singh&#8217;s performances as &#8220;<em>a whole new kind of feminisim in music<\/em>,&#8221;\u00a0and\u00a0Noisey, who credited Singh with &#8220;<em>tak[ing] us beyond the visceral thrills of punk while still indulging them.<\/em>&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Now, Hit Bargain are preparing to release their debut LP, &#8216;Potential Maximizer,&#8217; a scintillating 30 minute blast of\u00a0confrontational post-punk that more than makes good on the band&#8217;s early promise.\u00a0The album was written and recorded in 2017, with much of the writing taking\u00a0place over distance,\u00a0when Singh was in &#8220;self-imposed exile&#8221; from the band&#8217;s spiritual home, living in Ohio.<\/p>\n<p><em>&#8220;I reconnected with someone I knew when I lived in New York and then had to go dig him out of Ohio,&#8221;<\/em> says Singh. <em>&#8220;We didn&#8217;t intend to make an LA or California inspired album, though\u00a0there is inspiration to be found here, but at the same time\u00a0Ohio was informative. It&#8217;s the rust belt, and like a lot of American cities the main industry has bottomed out or doesn&#8217;t exist. The economy is reeling from that. Jobs are being shipped overseas and it&#8217;s a red state. Our neighbours had a Trump sign on their lawn and people would speak Spanish to me.&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n<p>The album was recorded over a three day period when she returned to the West Coast, with Mark Rains (Death Valley Girls, E-40) at\u00a0Station House Studio in Echo Park, while Singh was 6 months pregnant with her first child. Notably her performances did not lessen in their intensity during her pregnancy as she was still throwing herself off drum risers\u00a0during her third trimester and began incorporating her breast milk into the act.<\/p>\n<p>Singh describes\u00a0the album as a\u00a0&#8220;soundtrack for the present,&#8221; it&#8217;s 10 songs approaching a range of subject matter with an unblinking ferocity, and consistently imaginative musicianship. The clattering opener, &#8220;Hell Is Real&#8221;\u00a0tackles\u00a0&#8220;the ennui of late stage Capitalism,&#8221; and bears the influence of Singh&#8217;s Ohio exile, drawing inspiration from a mural in her partner&#8217;s town that affirms the reality of eternal damnation amidst the quotidian crumbling of the rust belt. <em>Capitulate<\/em>, the album&#8217;s lead single, sees Singh interrogate the ambiguities\u00a0of consent back-dropped by LA&#8217;s queer scene, the urgency of her refrain of &#8220;capitulate\/under the body of another&#8221; intensified by Barron&#8217;s dexterous, spiraling guitar work. <em>Knavs<\/em> finds a post-punk sweet spot somewhere between Gang of Four and Comsat Angels, the rhythm\u00a0section slinking with quiet menace under Singh&#8217;s musings on\u00a0<em>1984<\/em>, and the dynamics of Melania and Donald Trump&#8217;s marriage. <em>Tourist of My Desire<\/em> is a meditation on sex tourism abetted by guitar work that somehow splits the difference between Burzum and Wire. As a whole\u00a0it displays an omnivorous\u00a0appetite for the possibilities of aggressive music, while presenting what feels like an immersive and totalizing snap shot\u00a0of a\u00a0perspective in our paranoid, and absurd\u00a0cultural moment.<\/p>\n<p>Despite the urgency and deeply held convictions that underpin the songs, Singh is quick to point out that Hit Bargain retain a\u00a0sense of play, and in some instances, a twisted kind of humour, which\u00a0serves to heighten the impact of their music and performances.<\/p>\n<p><em>&#8220;I think the appeal is political agitation,&#8221;<\/em> says Singh.<em> &#8220;I&#8217;m fascinated by power dynamics, but what we want to do ultimately is transcend this dynamic, these scripts, sublimate this pain, and then we want to play. I am playing. I look serious, I sound serious, I mean what I&#8217;m saying, but I&#8217;m playing.\u00a0Pretty much everything I say is not meant to be taken 100% seriously&#8230;but I&#8217;m serious about it.&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Hit Bargain&#8217;s &#8216;Potential Maximizer&#8217; will be released on May 11th via Buzz Records. It&#8217;s available for pre-order\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/hivemindpr.us10.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u=04780c244c226dd8f0096243b&amp;id=da9abb27a5&amp;e=998dd35436\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">here<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"mcnImage alignleft\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/gallery.mailchimp.com\/04780c244c226dd8f0096243b\/images\/a1e7507a-b10d-49f0-98d7-b94b3b038ef6.jpeg?resize=297%2C297&#038;ssl=1\" width=\"297\" height=\"297\" align=\"center\" \/><\/p>\n<p><strong>&#8216;Potential Maximizer&#8217; tracklisting<\/strong><br \/>\n1. Hell Is Real<br \/>\n2. Capitulate<br \/>\n3. In Quiet Streets<br \/>\n4. Architects<br \/>\n5. Knavs<br \/>\n6. Tourist of My Desire<br \/>\n7. Tourist II<br \/>\n8. Untying a Knot<br \/>\n9. Hit Reset<br \/>\n10. I Was Born<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<div class=\"mh-excerpt\"><p>LA&#8217;s Hit Bargain have become the first band from outside Canada to sign to Buzz Records, and have announced their debut LP, &#8216;Potential Maximizer,&#8217; which <a class=\"mh-excerpt-more\" href=\"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?p=28370\" title=\"Hit Bargain announce debut LP &#8216;Potential Maximizer&#8217;\">[&#8230;]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":28371,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"_wpas_customize_per_network":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[22,23,28,30],"tags":[1869,7248,4567,7247],"class_list":["post-28370","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-guitar-rock","category-indie","category-music","category-new-release","tag-buzz-records","tag-capitulate","tag-hit-bargain","tag-potential-maximizer"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/5c5febf0-e36e-494e-941a-e8e22ac5241c.jpg?fit=800%2C591","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p2B2TV-7nA","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":17157,"url":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?p=17157","url_meta":{"origin":28370,"position":0},"title":"The Beverleys release new single &#8216;Spaced&#8217;","author":"cultureaddicts","date":"October 22, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"The Beverley's premiered their latest single Spaced over at Billboard, which\u00a0sees the band expand on the grunge influenced 90's rock and incorporates some more experimental sound\u00a0and psych elements, even momentarily flirting with Hawkwind-style space-rock. The\u00a0single will appear on the band's forthcoming debut full length,\u00a0'Brutal,' which is out via\u00a0Buzz Records on\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;indie&quot;","block_context":{"text":"indie","link":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?cat=23"},"img":{"alt_text":"The Beverleys","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/10\/ce4fb586-8b83-48f7-accc-97ff0557c4cb.jpg?fit=700%2C479&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/10\/ce4fb586-8b83-48f7-accc-97ff0557c4cb.jpg?fit=700%2C479&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/10\/ce4fb586-8b83-48f7-accc-97ff0557c4cb.jpg?fit=700%2C479&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/10\/ce4fb586-8b83-48f7-accc-97ff0557c4cb.jpg?fit=700%2C479&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":29375,"url":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?p=29375","url_meta":{"origin":28370,"position":1},"title":"Lonely Parade share &#8216;Night Cruise&#8217; video","author":"cultureaddicts","date":"June 13, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Last month, Lonely Parade announced their signing to Buzz Records with the premiere of their single, I'm So Tired. Now, the band are announcing their Buzz Records debut LP, 'The Pits,' which will be out on the label on\u00a0September 14th. To mark the announcement the band have shared a video\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;guitar rock&quot;","block_context":{"text":"guitar rock","link":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?cat=22"},"img":{"alt_text":"Lonely Parade","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/becc9bc7-5ca9-4754-8b70-cd9156933075.jpg?fit=800%2C530&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/becc9bc7-5ca9-4754-8b70-cd9156933075.jpg?fit=800%2C530&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/becc9bc7-5ca9-4754-8b70-cd9156933075.jpg?fit=800%2C530&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/becc9bc7-5ca9-4754-8b70-cd9156933075.jpg?fit=800%2C530&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":20723,"url":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?p=20723","url_meta":{"origin":28370,"position":2},"title":"Weaves premiere new track &#8216;One More&#8217; + announce debut LP","author":"cultureaddicts","date":"March 8, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Weaves have released their first single One More, which is lifted from their debut full length. Take a listen to the single via Soundcloud below. \u00a0 Showcasing the band at their most frenetic, the track functions, according to frontwoman Jasmyn Burke, as an assertion of independence. \"Sometimes I'm bothered by\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;indie&quot;","block_context":{"text":"indie","link":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?cat=23"},"img":{"alt_text":"Weaves","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/6a08bbc3-9f61-486a-ac5d-283686273643.jpg?fit=700%2C575&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/6a08bbc3-9f61-486a-ac5d-283686273643.jpg?fit=700%2C575&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/6a08bbc3-9f61-486a-ac5d-283686273643.jpg?fit=700%2C575&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/6a08bbc3-9f61-486a-ac5d-283686273643.jpg?fit=700%2C575&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":27181,"url":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?p=27181","url_meta":{"origin":28370,"position":3},"title":"Casper Skulls stream debut LP &#8216;Mercy Works&#8217; via CBC&#8217;s First Play","author":"cultureaddicts","date":"October 29, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Casper Skulls are streaming their debut LP 'Mercy Works'\u00a0via CBC's First Play, ahead of its release via Buzz Records on November 3rd. The follow up to their 'Lips & Skull' EP, the album\u00a0sees the band make good on their early promise, constituting a collection of songs that approaches a broad\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;guitar rock&quot;","block_context":{"text":"guitar rock","link":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?cat=22"},"img":{"alt_text":"Casper Skulls","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/ad6a23f8-7fdd-4301-9e50-59ac905331ee.jpg?fit=1200%2C796&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/ad6a23f8-7fdd-4301-9e50-59ac905331ee.jpg?fit=1200%2C796&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/ad6a23f8-7fdd-4301-9e50-59ac905331ee.jpg?fit=1200%2C796&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/ad6a23f8-7fdd-4301-9e50-59ac905331ee.jpg?fit=1200%2C796&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/ad6a23f8-7fdd-4301-9e50-59ac905331ee.jpg?fit=1200%2C796&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":14260,"url":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?p=14260","url_meta":{"origin":28370,"position":4},"title":"HSY announce debut album + release single &#8216;Scratch&#8217;","author":"cultureaddicts","date":"July 28, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"HSY has revealed the first single from their debut LP, 'Bask.'\u00a0The single,\u00a0Scratch, smacks you in the face with\u00a0buzzsaw guitars and a hyper-saturated drums and bass\u00a0propelling Jude\u2019s guttural vocals. According to Jude, Scratch was the first song written for HSY and addresses his own youthful self-regard. \u201cIts basically about being an\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;indie&quot;","block_context":{"text":"indie","link":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?cat=23"},"img":{"alt_text":"HSY group photo","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/HSY.jpg?fit=620%2C391&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/HSY.jpg?fit=620%2C391&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/HSY.jpg?fit=620%2C391&resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":21839,"url":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?p=21839","url_meta":{"origin":28370,"position":5},"title":"Pink Mexico announces &#8216;fool&#8217; LP","author":"cultureaddicts","date":"May 26, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Pink Mexico has announced their new LP, 'fool,' which will be out on June 24 via Burger Records in the US and Big Tomato Records in Europe. Along with the announcement, they revealed the fuzz-laden first single, Buzz Kill, which is a perfect lead in to Robert Preston\u2019s style of\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;indie&quot;","block_context":{"text":"indie","link":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?cat=23"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/06d28484-e30b-4321-b250-e55fb62427bd.jpg?fit=306%2C306&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28370","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=28370"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28370\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":31258,"href":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28370\/revisions\/31258"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/28371"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=28370"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=28370"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=28370"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}