Blunt Bangs (Reggie from Black Kids) prep debut LP: watch the "Odessa" video
Blunt Bangs is the new group led by Reggie Youngblood, who used to front Black Kids, that also includes guitarist Christian “Smokey” DeRoeck (Woods, Deep State) and drummer Cash Carter (Tracy Shedd, The Cadets). “Like quite a lot of artists before me, after committing a significant amount of time to one project, I wanted to switch up my mode of songwriting and work on ideas that didn’t quite feel right in Black Kids,” says Youngblood. The band are based out of Athens, GA and are gearing up to release their debut album, Proper Smoker, which will be out September 17 via Ernest Jenning Record Co.
Not a million miles from what he was doing with Black Kids — he still knows his way around a hook and a catchy chorus — Blunt Bangs lean a little more rock, in a glammy power pop kind of way, as you can hear on swaying new single “Odessa.” Reggie tells us, “‘Odessa’ is distinct to me in that it’s the last song I completed prior to the pandemic (I’ve not finished a song since, yikes) and it’s also the rare song where I don’t crack wise once. It also feels like the intersection of a Blunt Bangs/Black Kids Venn diagram, in that it might be only thing you can dance to on our album.”
The video for “Odessa,” directed by Kevin Snow and set at a roller rink, premieres in this post and you can watch below.
Blunt Bangs will be on a short East Coast tour this month for the album, including stops in Philly, Brooklyn (The Kingsland on September 21), Chicago and more. All dates are listed below.
BLUNT BANGS – PROPER SMOKER tracklist:
1. She’s Gone
2. Decide
3. Silence
4. Sick Moves
5. Eau Caroline
6. Speed Reader
7. Odessa
8. Tom Ford
9. Moshi Moshi
10. Hot Potato
BLUNT BANGS – 2021 TOUR DATES
September 13 – Asheville, NC @ Grey Eagle
September 14 – Columbia, SC @ Curiosity Coffee
September 16 – Washington, DC @ Comet Ping Pong
September 17 – Philadelphia, PA @ Ortlieb’s
September 20 – Cambridge, MA @ Middle East
September 21 – Brooklyn, NY @ Kingsland
September 22 – Louisville, KY @ Flamingo Lounge
September 23 – Davenport, IA @ Raccoon Motel
September 24 – Chicago, IL @ Dreamhouse/Luna’s Spot
September 25 – Newport, KY @ Southgate House
October 4 – Atlanta, GA @ 529
October 8 – Jacksonville, FL @ Rain Dogs
October 9 – Athens, GA @ Flicker
