ADULT. – Kissing Luck Goodbye
A quarter-century into their pioneering synth-punk / industrial collaborative project, ADULT.’s music has never sounded as visceral, urgent, and downright angry as it does on the culminating, uncompromising Kissing Luck Goodbye.
Built with upgraded gear and a whole new library of sounds, the material is crushingly dynamic, louder yet clearer, with a commanding vocal delivery from Nicola Kuperus’ who’s given greater prominence in the mix, outlining an arsenal of vivid, caustic calls, chants, and musings. Laughter, whether in the lyrics or as a possessed presence, serves as a leitmotif that speaks to the menacing absurdity of modern times.
For over 25 years, the dystopian Detroit synth-punk institution founded by Kuperus and Adam Lee Miller has embodied steadfast frustration, distrust, and apprehension. One might expect the edges to soften with time, but ADULT. is not interested in the comforts of legacy.
ADULT. is known for high-stakes catharsis on stage, and recently deployed their back catalog of bass guitar songs from the 2000s, retracing the prescient Anxiety Always era partially out of necessity given the temperature of today’s political and technological dread. The response was instant and palpable: “We were in Paris, and the kids were stage diving. And I was like, this is rad. This is kind of the energy I want to get back into,” Kuperus says. The epiphany coincided with a series of setbacks — Kuperus’ bouts with chronic vertigo, the loss of their close friend and collaborator Douglas McCarthy of Nitzer Ebb, whom the album is dedicated to — all made profoundly worse under the looming regime. “We were stuck in the mud for quite a while after the election,” Miller says. “We had all the concepts, but we would just be like, ‘What’s the point?’” With failing studio air conditioners and dead car batteries (their sacred space for listening back to recordings), they often joked that the album might be cursed. Kuperus adds, “We’re just like everything’s breaking. We’re breaking. We’re broken.”
The sentiment didn’t stick, however, as they found themselves ultimately too super-charged by fury to sit still. From watching Musk’s disgusting nazi salute to seeing their community struggle under the new regime to waiting months for a tariff-inflated replacement subwoofer, the vibe heading into Kissing Luck Goodbye was four middle fingers pointed straight up.
Rather than retreat, ADULT. focused on the process, revisiting their setup, complete with their first new mics in 20 years. They obsessed over textures, amassing a massive sample library taken from old thrift-store albums, previously used and unused ADULT. ingredients and new field recordings, running myriad items, including the buzz of shop vacs, through various pedals. Pause Kissing Luck Goodbye at any moment, and you’re likely to count a dozen things happening at once in strange, dizzying, and dissonant harmony. Together with producer Nolan Gray, whose involvement resulted from a chance encounter (he happened to be the host of the short-term rental property where the two stayed — maybe there is still some luck, after all), the band pushed themselves harder than ever before to build a world with this record.
ADULT. Live Dates:
Apr 10: Pittsburgh, PA – Spirit Lodge
Apr 11: Baltimore, MD – Ottobar
Apr 12: Brooklyn, NY – Good Room
Apr 14: Raleigh, NC – Kings
Apr 15: Atlanta, GA – The Earl
Apr 16: Jacksonville, FL – Jack Rabbits
Apr 17: Orlando, FL – The Social
Apr 18: Miami, FL – TBD
Apr 21: New Orleans, LA – Gasa Gasa
Apr 22: Houston, TX – White Oak Music Hall (Upstairs)
Apr 23: Austin, TX – 29th Street Ballroom
Apr 24: San Antonio, TX – Paper Tiger
Apr 25: Denton, TX – Rubber Gloves
Apr 28: Albuquerque, NM – Sister
Apr 29: Phoenix, AZ – Rebel Lounge
Apr 30: San Diego, CA – The Casbah
May 01: Los Angeles, CA – Hollywood Forever (Masonic Lodge)
May 02: San Francisco, CA – Rickshaw Stop
May 04: Portland, OR – Mississippi Studios
May 05: Seattle, WA – Barboza
May 08: Minneapolis, MN – 7th St. Entry
May 09: Cudahy, WI – X-Ray Arcade
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