Janet Weiss, Mary Timony & more backing Joe Wong on new album / tour
You may know multi-instrumentalist Joe Wong from ’00s-era band Parts and Labor, as host of drum-centric podcast The Trap Set or as the composer for such shows as Master of None, Russian Doll, Ugly Delicious and Awkwafina is Nora From Queens. He’s now set to release his full-length solo debut, Nite Creatures, which will be out May 15 via Decca Records. The album was produced by Mary Timony (Ex Hex, Helium), who also plays guitar on the record, and it also features Mary Lattimore, Flaming Lips’ Steven Drozd, War on Drugs’ Jon Natchez, Shudder to think frontman (and fellow film/TV composer) Craig Wedren, and Anna Waronker (That Dog), not to mention a 24-piece orchestra.
The album’s songs, which are in an orch-pop vein a la The Zombies or The Left Banke, were written over a nearly 10-year period between his father’s stroke in 2010 and death in 2019. “It’s basically about losing someone slowly,” says Wong. “It has a lot to do with losing elements of his personality, piece by piece. The album’s about loss, but it’s about coming to terms with it and not being afraid of it. The final loss was a relief and lots of it is kind of like my way of telling him it’s OK to go.”
Joe will also head out on his first solo tour, where he’ll be backed by an impressive band: Mary Timony on guitar, Crisanta Baker (Lo Moon) on keys, Chad Molter (Faraquet) on bass, Mary Lattimore on harp, plus a live chamber orchestra. On the West Coast, Matt Cameron (Soundgarden, Pearl Jam) will be behind the drum kit, and on East Coast and Midwest dates, he’ll have Janet Weiss (Sleater-Kinney, Quasi, Stephen Malkmus & Jicks) on drums.
The tour stops in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Portland, Seattle, Philadelphia, NYC (Le Poisson Rouge on May 28) and Chicago. Tickets go on sale Friday (2/28) at noon. All tour dates, and the album art and tracklist, is below.
Nite Creatures tracklist:
1. Dreams Wash Away
2. Sleeping
3. Day After Day
4. Nite Creatures
5. Always Alone
6. In The Morning
7. Minor
8. Nuclear Rainbow
9. The Long Parade
10. Shadow Of The Year
Joe Wong – 2020 Tour Dates:
May 20 – Los Angeles, CA @ Lodge Room
May 22 – San Francisco, CA @ The Independent
May 23 – Portland, OR @ Revolution Hall
May 24 – Seattle, WA @ Neumos
May 26 – Philadelphia, PA @ World Cafe Live
May 28 – New York, NY @ Le Poisson Rouge
May 30 – Chicago, IL @ Lincoln Hall
Joe Wong + Nite Creatures Touring Band:
Joe Wong – Vocals
Mary Timony – Guitar
Matt Cameron – Drums (West Coast Dates)
Janet Weiss – Drums (East Coast + Midwest Dates)
Crisanta Baker – Keyboards
Chad Molter – Bass
Mary Lattimore – Harp (Select Dates)
Live Chamber Orchestra in All Cities
