The New Pornographers’ debut record for new label Merge Records, Continue as a Guest, is out now! In celebration of the new record, the band is debuting the album track “Bottle Episodes." Listen to and share the album, then purchase it on CD, LP, or various exclusive color vinyl variants from the band, Merge Records, and other outlets here. 

“‘Here inside the TV glow of these bottle episodes,’ this one is another ambivalent story about day-to-day life in the pandemic times,” notes frontperson A.C. Newman. “I was trying to capture a feeling of being stuck, but you don’t mind being stuck. You’re not sure what to call this life you’re leading. Are you happy? You might be. There should be a word for this.”

The album tackles themes of isolation and collapse, following the ambivalence of day-to-day life during the pandemic and the endless pitfalls of living online. But Newman says that Continue as a Guest’s title track also addresses the continually rolling concerns that come with being in a band for so long. “The idea of continuing as a guest felt very apropos to the times,” he explains. “Feeling out of place in culture, in society—not feeling like a part of any zeitgeist, but happy to be separate and living your simple life, your long fade-out. Find your own little nowhere, find some space to fall apart, continue as a guest.”

The New Pornographers begin a run of North American shows this spring with support from Wild Pink. The dates include two sold-out nights at Chicago’s Thalia Hall, as well as further performances at New York’s Brooklyn Steel and Boston’s Royale. See below for a complete list of dates and purchase your tickets now!

The New Pornographers on tour:
Apr 19 Asheville, NC – Salvage Station* 
Apr 20 Atlanta, GA – Variety Playhouse*
Apr 21 New Orleans, LA – Tipitina’s*
Apr 22 Houston, TX – White Oak Music Hall*
Apr 23 Dallas, TX – Studio at The Factory*
Apr 25 Austin, TX – Paramount*
Apr 26 Oklahoma City, OK – Tower Theatre*
Apr 27 St. Louis, MO – Sheldon Concert Hall*
Apr 28 Omaha, NE – The Waiting Room*
Apr 29 Kansas City, MO – The Truman*
Apr 30 Denver, CO – Gothic Theatre*
May 03 St. Paul, MN – The Fitzgerald*
May 04 Milwaukee, WI – Turner Hall*
May 05 Chicago, IL – Thalia Hall [SOLD OUT]*
May 06 Chicago, IL – Thalia Hall [SOLD OUT]*
May 08 Cincinnati, OH – Memorial Hall*
May 09 Columbus, OH – Newport Music Hall*
May 11 Detroit, MI – El Club [SOLD OUT]*
May 12 Toronto, ON – Danforth*
May 13 Burlington, VT – Higher Ground Ballroom*
May 14 Norwalk, CT – Wall Street Theater*
May 15 Boston, MA – Royale*
May 17 New York, NY – Brooklyn Steel*
May 18 Philadelphia, PA – Union Transfer*
May 19 Washington, DC – 9:30 Club [SOLD OUT]*
May 20 Washington, DC – 9:30 Club*
May 21 Saxapahaw, NC – Haw River Ballroom*
*w/ Wild Pink