Chastity Belt (LP)

Acclaimed Seattle band Chastity Belt have returned with their first new music since 2017's I Used to Spend So Much Time Alone.

The band talks a lot about intention these days - how to be more present with each other. The four-piece - Julia Shapiro (vocals, guitar, drums), Lydia Lund (vocals, guitar), Gretchen Grimm (drums, vocals, guitar) and Annie Truscott (bass) - is nine years deep in this, after all. It seems now, more than ever, that circuit is a movement of intentionality, one that creates a space inside which they can be themselves, among themselves.

Their fourth record, Chastity Belt, comes out of that safe space. After a restorative few months on hiatus in 2018, each member worked on solo material or toured with other bands.

Their experience navigating adult life within the strange seasons of the music industry has Chastity Belt orienting themselves towards whatever gets them to feel the most present with each other, in any part of the band grind. With the luxury of spending several weeks in the studio with Jay Som's Melina Duterte, Chastity Belt was able to experiment. The new self-titled album is the work of the band playing "old songs, and trying new things on top of it," like adding more dynamic harmonies and violin, says bassist Annie Truscott. Lydia, Gretchen, and Julia all share lead vocals on different tracks on the album. The result is their most sonically developed and nuanced record yet; one that's not only a product of, but a series of reflections on what it means to take what you need and to understand yourself better.