watch Charles Bissell play Wrens classics backed by Cymbals Eat Guitars in NYC

The Wrens have been talking about their highly anticipated followup to 2003’s The Meadowlands for quite some time, and singer Charles Bissell has been hosting listening parties of the album at his apartment, so hopefully that means 2018 will be the year it sees the light of day. Charles also just played some new songs solo at his recent holiday shows with Cymbals Eat Guitars (who he has a long-running relationship with), but perhaps more excitingly, he played some Wrens classics with CEG backing him. Ahead of the shows, Charles wrote:

So here’re the specifics of the closest I’ve come to a tour in 8 or 9 years:

Playing three shows opening up solo for Cymbals Eat Guitars, playing a few of these new long-belabored jams from the nearly-done record, a cover or two, maybe a holiday chestnut, maybe an audience participation number…

But cooler, the 2nd half of my ‘solo’ set is me doing wrens songs w/ Joe and Cymbals Eat Guitars as the backing band (..accompanying band? Co-band..?). We rehearsed it last week in Philadelphia and it was honestly a hoot. And an honor.

Joe named it Wrenses Alien, which I only wish I’d thought of.

Watch some videos of Wrenses Alien at Bowery Ballroom on 12/29 below.