PREMIERE: Po Lazarus return with Violent Times

It’s been over three years since Montreal band Po Lazarus has released new music on streaming platforms. Today, the band returns with “Violent Times,” the first single off of their forthcoming three-track EP Despair, Too, to be released later this year. The accompanying video is directed by Jaguzzi:

Despair, Too found Po Lazarus recording at the Bathouse Recording Studio, a space just outside of Kingston, Ontario that is owned and operated by the legendary Tragically Hip. The Hip’s longtime collaborator Mark Vreeken lent a hand in producing this single. Vreeken’s previous credits include producing for Leonard Cohen and King Crimson.

The accompanying music video for “Violent Time” stays true to its name, ending in a full blown torture scene between bandmembers Joshua Carey and Paul Mascarenhas. The band explain that the video is a tribute to old slasher films and symbolic of the tumultuous times the world has been experiencing.

A statement on the band’s website illustrates “Violent Times” in further depth:

“A deadly pandemic. Tyranny. Destructive wildfires. Police brutality. Raging riots. Silent genocides. Countries and a world divided…The irony of these instances that conquered 2020’s news cycle is that they occurred one year following the 2019 recording of “Violent Times.” The lyrics, more true now than could have been anticipated, serve as a perfect introduction to the passion-rock prophets that are Po Lazarus.”

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