Chimes tap into the shadows with new video for ‘Wishing For Summer’

Debut album ‘Pile of Parts’ out now

There’s something brewing in Gainesville — and it sounds like rain hitting neon. Chimes, a band stitched together from the DNA of Against Me!, Averkiou, and Sunshine State, just dropped a moody little gem in the form of a new video for Wishing For Summer. And spoiler: it’s dripping with that dark, synth-soaked melancholy we can’t get enough of.

Born in 2019 from the minds of singer/guitarist Mike Magarelli and keyboardist/guitarist Kyle Fick, Chimes started as an experiment, a place to test out some new sonic ideas. Before long, bassist/singer Matt Brink and drummer Todd Weissfeld joined in, and the band took their brooding blend of post-punk and synth-pop to the stage… just in time for the world to shut down.

Cue the pandemic pause. Todd moved abroad, Warren Oakes stepped behind the kit, and the band regrouped — slower, maybe, but sharper.

Now, after a few years of weaving together pain, introspection, and vintage synths, Chimes is ready to release their debut album ‘Pile of Parts’ (out now via Ashtray Monument). It’s not a sunshine-and-rainbows kind of record. It’s the sound of something quietly coming apart — haunting, honest, and soaked in beautiful gloom. If you’re into The Cure’s ‘Disintegration,’ you’re going to feel right at home here.

Wishing For Summer, the second single off the album, is a perfect example. It’s hazy, heavy-hearted, and totally hypnotic — a track that floats through loneliness like it’s swimming in an old VHS dream. And yeah, there’s a video. You should definitely watch it below.

The album itself was pieced together between 2023 and 2024 in various corners of Gainesville — tracked by Ryan Williams at Black Bear Studios, Kevin Bruchert at Little Wing Studios, and Kyle Fick at home. Kyle also handled mixing duties, while mastering was wrapped up by Jason Livermore at The Blasting Room. The stark, striking artwork comes courtesy of Noelle Shuck, and it nails the tone: bleak but beautiful.

‘Pile of Parts’ is out now — get in on it.