{"title":"Special Interest","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eSpecial Interest is an artist hailing from New Orleans, LA. Their unique sound draws influences from a diverse range of genres including punk, post-punk, and electronic music. With their energetic live performances and thought-provoking lyrics, Special Interest has gained a dedicated following both locally and internationally.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eComparable to artists such as Mandy, Indiana and Gilla Band, Special Interest brings a fresh perspective to the music scene. Their music is characterized by its raw intensity and powerful vocals that captivate audiences. Drawing inspiration from bands like Big Joanie and Algiers, Special Interest combines elements of punk with experimental sounds to create a truly distinctive sound.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWith releases such as *The Passion Of*, *Trust No Wave*, and *Spiraling*, Special Interest continues to push boundaries in the music industry. Their collaborations with artists like Water From Your Eyes and Lucrecia Dalt showcase their versatility as musicians. Whether it's performing alongside PVA or Model\/Actriz or sharing stages with Nourished by Time or 700 Bliss, Special Interest consistently delivers electrifying performances that leave a lasting impression on their audience.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"endure","title":"Endure","description":"\u003cp\u003eNew Orleans no-wave punks Special interest release \u003ci\u003eEndure\u003c\/i\u003e, their third album and Rough Trade Records debut.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eOn every level, Special Interest is uncompromising: in their adventurous sound, their high-energy live performances, and their convictions. Dance music and punk culture have flirted in the warehouse before, but Special Interest’s desire to dismantle genre is informed by a larger abolitionist worldview that resists constraint, category, and conformity. Their music is a soundtrack to dancing the pain away as much as raging against the machine. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eSpecial Interest describes the experience of recording \u003ci\u003eEndure \u003c\/i\u003eas “inverted,” since the pandemic obviously stunted the possibilities of live performance, resulting in a new period of experimentation and sonic exploration in which old rules were cast out. Everything the group writes springs from the same source — a hard-hitting drum machine beat — but the possibilities are endless and the outcome always unpredictable. Ruth Mascelli’s work on drum machines and synthesizers provides a foundation, as varying beats lead the group into different directions: rave-ready drum and bass or ballroom-like house on the more dancefloor-friendly cuts, and marching kicks on No Wave-inflected tracks like “Foul”. “Cherry Blue Intention” brings together a sturdy post-punk bassline, shrieking guitar effects, and a jungle breakbeat into a driving anthem of an opening track. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe new songs recall the art rock of Sparks and The B-52s as much as politically-minded punk, and on “Midnight Legend,” the group is more overtly pop than ever before — making something fun during a time of frequent sadness became a central priority. But that doesn’t mean anything is simple or surface-level, with a darkness often treading beneath the smooth production. For as much as the band plays with dissonance, Maria Elena’s expressive guitar work and Nathan Cassiani’s grooving bass lines effortlessly weave together, and shade out the soundscape brought into existence by Alli Logout’s commanding vocal presence. Collaboration is central to the band’s creative process, and it’s difficult to imagine even one element from the whole of Special Interest subtracted from the equation. Their songs are living organisms, open to the possibility of experimentation and interpretation, but also not the property or creation of any one person.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Rough Trade Records","offers":[{"title":"Yellow | LP","offer_id":50410688381259,"sku":"1165949","price":24.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD","offer_id":50410688184651,"sku":"1165947","price":12.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"LP","offer_id":50410689069387,"sku":"1165948","price":24.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/89b9bece-fbc2-4f43-9833-220be7d3c6f6_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1726647985"},{"product_id":"street-pulse-beat","title":"Street Pulse Beat","description":"\u003cp\u003eFollowing the release of their album \u003ci\u003eThe Passion Of...\u003c\/i\u003e In 2020, New Orleans-based punk band Special Interest release a new 12\" release 'Street Pulse Beat', which features remixes from Boy Harsher, Ruth Mascelli and DJ Haram. The record is released via Nude Club Records.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Nude Club","offers":[{"title":"Black | 12\"","offer_id":50447342698827,"sku":"1111110","price":13.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/3880625a-892d-414a-814e-aea1c345a647_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727076273"},{"product_id":"trust-no-wave","title":"Trust No wave","description":"\u003cp\u003eThe next release on Disciples is a reissue of the demo tape by Special Interest, an incredibly exciting band from New Orleans who were awarded 'best new music' status by Pitchfork last year and appeared in many album of the year lists for their killer second LP \u003ci\u003eThe Passion Of....\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eCombining elements of no wave, glam and industrial music, they breath fresh life into the standard template of punk rock. Drum machine rhythms and electronic textures are skilfully blended with buzzsaw guitars and post-punk basslines, and their songs are taken to another level by the vocals of Alli Logout, full of rage, passion, disgust, venom and sass. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe \u003ci\u003eTrust No Wave\u003c\/i\u003e LP is a first time vinyl pressing of their 2016 demo with bonus track, new sleeve designed by Studio Tape Echo and 8 page risographed zine insert.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFour of the tracks here are raw early versions of songs that would appear in slightly more refined form on their debut album, 2018’s \u003ci\u003eSpiralling\u003c\/i\u003e. The other four pieces are unique to this release, including a cover version of Italian new wave band Chrisma, raging opener “Disease”, the over-saturated shoegaze-punk of “ATC” and comedown lament “I’ll Never Do Ketamine Again”. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe band’s second album \u003ci\u003eThe Passion Of\u003c\/i\u003e, a co-release by Night School Records and Thrilling Living, came out last year and was recently followed by a companion album of remixes on Boy Harsher’s Nude Club label, with all profits going to NOLA charity House Of Tulip. \u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Disciples","offers":[{"title":"Black LP","offer_id":50460870869323,"sku":"1120088","price":27.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/d89dbc28-4019-493f-8c6a-8728b869ee19_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727239450"},{"product_id":"herman-s-house","title":"(Herman's) House","description":"\u003cp\u003eNew Orleans no-wave punks Special Interest release their first music on Rough Trade Records - a dynamic new track called “(Herman’s) House”. The b-side features a cover of Amanda Lear’s “Follow Me”. The artwork for the single is inspired by the original Rough Trade 7”s design such as the classic Augustus Pablo single ‘Pablo Meets Mr Bassie’ from 1978. It also be priced in-line with the cost of records in that era, at just 85p!.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“(Herman’s) House” is centered around the story of Herman Wallace, one of the Angola Three - three Black revolutionaries who were held for decades in solitary confinement while imprisoned at Louisiana State Penitentiary. Two of them, Wallace and Albert Woodfox, were held for over 40 years in solitary confinement. During Wallace’s imprisonment, he became close with an artist, Jackie Sumell, and the two collaborated to create Wallace’s dream house, taking four years and hundreds of letters to design it.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Rough Trade Records","offers":[{"title":"Black | 7\"","offer_id":50481358307659,"sku":"1155425","price":0.85,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/caba70f7-bab9-4d43-8af4-e0aaffabc489_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727538098"},{"product_id":"the-passion-of","title":"The Passion Of....","description":"\u003cp\u003eSpecial Interest return with their sophomore LP. A dual release from Night School (UK) and Thrilling Living (US), \u003ci\u003eThe Passion Of... \u003c\/i\u003ecombines elements of glam rock and no wave pushed through a mangled filter of contemporary electronic forms. Special Interest present a precise and deranged vision of punk, an apocalyptic celebration, a step forward into a perverse and uncertain landscape.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eRecorded throughout 2019 with engineer James Whitten, \u003ci\u003eThe Passion Of \u003c\/i\u003efinds the band with a fuller realization of their sound. While their debut, Quintron-produced, album Spiraling documented a band discovering their purpose, \u003ci\u003eThe Passion Of…\u003c\/i\u003e is both more chaotic and melodic, daring to finally live up to their notorious wall-of-sound live performances. Massive, juddering beats from an old Electribe sampler and distorted bass provide much of the rhythmic backbone. Offering moments of clarity and hope in their signature bratty maladjusted manner, switching from high camp satire to insightful political imperatives often within the course of one song.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Passion Of... \u003c\/i\u003etakes you on an odyssey, from celebrating the highs and lows of hedonism (\u003ci\u003eDisco III)\u003c\/i\u003e, to dystopian anthems (\u003ci\u003eAll Tomorrow’s Carry\u003c\/i\u003e) and disillusioned love songs (\u003ci\u003eStreet Pulse Beat\u003c\/i\u003e). Ending in a powerful final decree (\u003ci\u003eWith Love\u003c\/i\u003e) offering visions and desires for futures to come. \u003ci\u003eThe Passion Of...\u003c\/i\u003e is a culmination of Special Interest’s long standing obsessions. Not just bearing witness but living and moving towards our innate desire for rapture in an urgent and raw testimony of the here and now.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"Beyond blood we fight towards liberation\"\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Night School","offers":[{"title":"Black | LP","offer_id":50489507479883,"sku":"1096854","price":22.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/44fbc57b-f738-4efb-907f-6b3f3464e35e_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727642879"}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/collections\/test_d147460b_thumbnail_4096_b07d0830-5bd2-4306-87d0-fcebf6bd6a66.jpg?v=1726647938","url":"https:\/\/shop.roughtrade.com\/collections\/special-interest.oembed","provider":"Rough Trade","version":"1.0","type":"link"}