Alien Boy
photo by Sam Gehrke

Alien Boy prep LP for Tiny Engines (stream "If We Don't Speak")

Portland punkgazers Alien Boy are one of the latest signings to the trusty Tiny Engines (also home to The Hotelier, Restorations, Wild Pink, and more), and they’re release their debut album for the label, Sleeping Lessons, on August 31 (pre-order). The band is led by Sonia Weber, who’s also played in other Portland bands like Floating Room, the Kind of Like Spitting reunion lineup, Sweeping Exits, and Our First Brains, and Sonia’s voice really soars. A lot of bands do the punk/shoegaze thing now, but not that many of them have a singer who’s as much of a force as Sonia. Sleepy bedroom-recorded shoegaze singing this is not; Sonia belts like she’s already ready to play huge rooms, and she does it without ever falling into radio-rock bombast. We’re premiering the super catchy “If We Don’t Speak” off the new album, and here’s what Sonia tells us about it:

I was having dreams about the same person every night for months after a break up and it felt like we were still communicating even though we didn’t talk anymore, that’s what this song is about. Feeling hopelessly close to someone, no matter how much space you give each other little things happen that make you know they’re still there in you’re heart. The song feels like a cry for their attention.

Listen below.

Alien Boy have just a few upcoming shows at the moment: the Portland stop of their labelmates awakebutstillinbed‘s tour with Football, etc (which is this Thursday, 8/2), Camp Daze Music Fest in Missoula, and a hometown record release show.