It’s always a great day at Merge HQ when we get to tell you this: THERE’S A NEW SUPERCHUNK ALBUM! 

Wild Loneliness, recorded at home in North Carolina during lockdown and mixed by Wally Gagel (Here’s Where the Strings Come In), is out February 25 worldwide.

“Endless Summer,” featuring the harmonies of Teenage Fanclub’s Norman Blake and Raymond McGinley, is the first single from the album and is out today. A limited-edition 7-inch single on yellow vinyl is shipping from the Merge warehouse now, and participating independent record shops will carry an exclusive translucent lime green edition starting Friday. The 7-inch contains a cover of The Glands’ “When I Laugh” (feat. William Tyler on guitar) as the B-side. Listen to “Endless Summer” alongside the lyric video below.

Superchunk’s Mac McCaughan on the new track:

“Endless Summer” was written on New Year’s Day 2020 which was unseasonably warm here in North Carolina. Of course, by the time we recorded it, “endless summer” had other meanings… The 7” sleeve features Roe Ethridge’s beautiful photos of broken beach umbrellas which capture the vibe of the song perfectly.

In addition to McGinley and Blake, Wild Loneliness features guest spots from Sharon Van Etten, R.E.M.’s Mike Mills, Wye Oak’s Andy Stack, Tracyanne Campbell of Camera Obscura, Owen Pallett, Kelly Pratt, and Franklin Bruno. We gave an advance listen of the new album to poet and Superchunk fan Maggie Smith; here’s what she wrote:

Like every record Superchunk has made over the last thirty-some years, Wild Loneliness is unskippably excellent and infectious. It’s a blend of stripped-down and lush, electric and acoustic, highs and lows, and I love it all. On Wild Loneliness I hear echoes of Come Pick Me Up, Here’s to Shutting Up, and Majesty Shredding. After the (ahem, completely justifiable) anger of What a Time to Be Alive, this new record is less about what we’ve lost in these harrowing times and more about what we have to be thankful for.

Pre-order Wild Loneliness today on CD, LP, and limited-edition green & yellow “sunspots” Peak Vinyl in the Merge store where, for a very limited time, the album can be bundled with an exclusive Superchunk long-sleeve t-shirt featuring Farah Al Qasimi’s enigmatic cover photo. In addition, fans in North Carolina can pick up Wild Loneliness at their favorite homestate independent record shop on pink & green “watermelon” vinyl along with a free 12”×12” print designed by Ron Liberti. The exclusive NC edition is limited to 400 copies.

Superchunk embark on a North American tour in support of Wild Loneliness in late February, and tickets go on sale this Friday, December 10, at 10am local time. Laura Ballance plays bass on the album, and the live Superchunk lineup will continue as Mac McCaughan, Jim Wilbur, and Jon Wurster, with Jason Narducy on bass.

Superchunk on tour:
Feb 25 Winston-Salem, NC – Ramkat*
Feb 26 Carrboro, NC – Cat’s Cradle*
Mar 01 Washington, DC – Black Cat*
Mar 02 Philadelphia, PA – Union Transfer*
Mar 03 Brooklyn, NY – Brooklyn Steel*
Mar 04 Holyoke, MA – Gateway City Arts*
Mar 05 Boston, MA – Paradise Rock Club*
Mar 07 Toronto, ON – Axis Club^
Mar 08 Detroit, MI – El Club^
Mar 09 Chicago, IL – Metro^
Mar 11 Nashville, TN – Brooklyn Bowl^
Mar 12 Atlanta, GA – Terminal West^
Apr 04 Seattle, WA – Neumos%
Apr 05 Portland, OR – Revolution Hall%
Apr 07 San Francisco, CA – Independent#
Apr 09 Pioneertown, CA – Pappy and Harriet's#
Apr 10 Los Angeles, CA – Teragram Ballroom#
* w/ TORRES
^ w/ Wednesday
% w/ Quasi
# w/ Mike Krol

[photo: Brett Villena]