4 weeks ago
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Katie Gavin, lead singer of MUNA, has unveiled “Casual Drug Use,” the second single off her new debut album What a Relief.
Built from warm acoustic guitar and Gavin’s raw vocals, “Casual Drug Use” has a country-esque hue to it. Gavin describes the highs and lows of being young, heartsick, and of course, casually doing drugs. “Somedays you do your best/ somedays you do what gets you out of bed,” she sings before the song’s anthemic chorus swells.
Gavin wrote the song in 2016, following a breakup and a day trip she took with a friend. “This is a song about being young and on bad behavior, and the comfort of having friends by your side,” Gavin said in a statement. “I thought it would be sweet to film the video on a road trip I had planned with my childhood best friend. The different colored potions in the video are meant to be a stand-in for whatever external substance we use to change our internal states.” Watch the road trip-themed video for “Casual Drug Use” below.
“Casual Drug Use” follows lead single “Aftertaste,” which arrived when Gavin announced What a Relief last month. Gavin described the album as being “Lilith Fair-core,” named Alanis Morrissette and Fiona Apple as influences, and said its themes centered on “having a really deep desire for connection, but also encountering all the obstacles that stood in my way to be able to achieve that.” What a Relief is out everywhere on October 25th via Phoebe Bridgers’ Saddest Factory Records.
Gavin’s band MUNA just concluded their performance at Newport Folk Festival, and have a few more shows on the docket for September. Afterwards, Gavin begins her headlining tour, with a North American leg that kicks off in November after the release of What of Relief. See her tour dates below and get tickets here.
Katie Gavin 2024 Tour Dates:
09/07 – Evanston, IL @ Evanston Folk Festival *
09/11 – London, UK @ The Old Church
09/22 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Greek Theater *
09/28 – New York, NY @ Forest Hills Stadium *
11/19 – Seattle, WA @ Neumos
11/20 – Portland, OR @ The Old Church
11/22 – San Francisco, CA @ Bimbo’s 365 Club
11/24 – Pioneertown, CA @ Pappy + Harriet’s
11/25 – Los Angeles, CA @ Masonic Lodge at Hollywood Forever
12/08 – Nashville, TN @ The Blue Room
12/10 – New York, NY @ Bowery Ballroom
12/13 – Washington, DC @ The Atlantis
12/14 – Boston, MA @ Brighton Music Hall
12/16 – Toronto, ON @ The Great Hall
12/18 – Chicago, IL @ Thalia Hall
* = w/ MUNA
English (US) · 