LP ‘Love, Darla’ drops this Fall
If you’ve been paying attention to the name Retail Drugs, you’re going to want to turn your ears toward Laveda — the other sonic universe dreamed up by co-founders Jake Brooks and Ali Genevich. The New York-based duo is back with a brand-new single called Cellphone, — a sharp, deadpan scream into the ever-blinking blue light of our digital dependence.
Cellphone is equal parts punk meltdown and digital-era fatigue. It captures the push-pull of constant online existence — the dopamine drip, the doomscroll haze, the emptiness of always being “connected.” It’s noisy, it’s raw, and it sounds like someone finally cracked and hit record mid-spiral. But there’s intention behind the chaos. This isn’t just a tantrum — it’s a carefully constructed catharsis.
The track is a taste of what’s coming on Laveda’s upcoming LP ‘Love, Darla,’ due out September 12 via Bar/None Records — yes, that Bar/None, home to indie royalty like Yo La Tengo and They Might Be Giants.
Cellphone follows the June release of Heaven, a sweaty, electric jolt of a track that marked Laveda’s signing to the label. That first single was a full-tilt party in song form — literally. The video was filmed during a one-shot DIY bash in a Brooklyn apartment. It’s dizzying, gritty, chaotic, and totally alive — a perfect match for the band’s raw, angular new sound.
Laveda’s latest material is soaked in NYC energy — think East Village scuzz meets shoegaze shimmer, with a pinch of existential dread. Since relocating to Queens, Brooks and Genevich have leveled up their sound, leaning into collaborative experimentation and biting social commentary. And yes, they’ve got a lot to say about performing online versus IRL, the pitfalls of digital identity, and the burnout that comes from having to be “on” all the time.
Mark your calendars for ‘Love, Darla’ on September 12. Until then, go scream into your screen with Cellphone. It just might scream back.
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