Hockey Dad have shared a new single from forthcoming album Brain Candy, releasing ‘In This State’ today. A lively, dynamic burst of pop-inflected punk, ‘In This State’ was the first song the duo completed when working on the new album, initially coming together in 2018.
“We came up with most of it the weekend of Splendour in the Grass,” says the band’s Zach Stephenson, explaining that the song’s opening guitar parts were developed while rehearsing to perform a You Am I song with Tim Rogers at the festival.
“Tim seemed to like them, which got us even more excited to finish it and start playing it live. To me, it always felt like an album opener. The initial energy it brings sets a great pace for the rest of the album. It’s definitely one of the most energetic songs in the live set for sure.”
In addition to releasing the single, the band have shared the news that they’ll be pushing back the release of Brain Candy until Friday, 31st July. It was originally slated to hit shelves at the end of May.
‘In This State’ is the third new song we’ve heard from the John Goodmanson-produced album thus far, following ‘Itch’ and ‘I Missed Out’. Stephenson says Brain Candy takes a reflective, more mature approach to songwriting than previous work, contrasting it with 2018 album Blend Inn.
“[Our last album] dealt with problems in a less mature way through fighting and complaining. I think getting older, I have come to see these situations as learning experiences—using these songs to understand my surroundings and lessons I’ve been given.”
Watch the lyric video for ‘In This State’ below.
