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Music

Vundabar's "Acetone" Is a Baptism by Fire

The sludge pop duo's new track smacks you over the head before you know what hit you—and that's the point. Don't miss them on tour this November.
Tim Oxton

Boston garage duo Vundabar have been lowkey turning out some of the best sludgy pop around since 2012, earning a devoted following (a recent sold-out show at NYC's Union Pool was so packed, we had to sneak in high school-style), and are finally gearing up to become one of your favorite new discoveries with a tour this November and the forthcoming Smell Smoke early next year.

Ahead of that, the band is releasing a two-track 7-inch, and today Noisey is pleased to premiere the first of those tunes, "Acetone." It's a jangly, ramshackle number that smacks you over the head in a mad-dash 2:30, in and out before you know what hit you—and that's kind of the point. Its mischievous jaunt is belied by the turmoil that inspired it: The toxic corrosion of shame and repression, and the Sisyphean struggle to reconcile the identity we present to the world with the fractured reality of our pain and imperfections.

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Here's what frontman Brandon Hagen had to say about it:

"Acetone" is a song about fragmentation. Over the last four years the two domineering poles of my life were taking care of a loved one who suffered a severe illness, and the other the requirements of managing, booking and playing in a touring band. One was deeply personal, gutting and insular; an experience I shared with hardly anyone. The other was endless exhibitionism. Both exhausting in their own right, and each further aggravated the other. The song worries about being marred by experience. It wonders if the origin of the shame and repression is something socialized, and therefore something that could be unlearned; could that suit be unsewn. The song is about not wanting to be seen, but knowing if you continue the way you are, then the options are few. Acetone is a substance that sticks around when contained, ignites when sparked, and evaporates when left out. The song addresses a need for openness and its release is a baptism by fire.

Listen to the premiere of Vunadabar's "Acetone" and check out the band's tour dates below:

10.24 BSP KINGSTON, KINGSTON NY
10.25 SPACEBAR, COLUMBUS, OH
10.26 KENYON COLLEGE, GAMBIER OH
10.27 GRINNELL, GRINNELL IA
10.28 PETSHOP, OMAHA NE
11.1 THE HI HAT, LOS ANGELES CA
11.3 SOMA, SAN DIEGO CA^
11.4 THE REBEL LOUNGE, PHOENIX AZ^
11.5 LAUNCHPAD, ABQ NM^
11.8 PAPER TIGER, SAN ANTONIO TX^
11.9 CLUB DADA, DALLAS TX^
11.10 WALTER'S, HOUSTON TX^
11.11 CHEER UP CHARLIES, AUSTIN TX^
11.12 HIGH WATT, NASHVILLE TN^
11.13 THE MASQUERADE, ATL GA^
11.14 BACKBOOTH, ORLANDO FL^
11.16 ROCK AND ROLL HOTEL, DC^
11.18 FIRST UNITARIAN CHURCH, PHILLY^
11.19 BOWERY BALLROOM NYC^
11.20 THE SINCLAIR, CAMBRIDGE MA^
11.22 THE SELTER, DETRIOT MI^
11.24 MAHALL'S, LAKEWOOD OH^
11.25 LINCOLN HALL, CHICAGO IL^
11.26 7TH ST ENTRY, MINNEAPOLIS MN^
11.28 LARIMER LOUNGE, DENVER CO^
11.29 KILBY COURT, SALT LAKE CITY UT^
12.1 SLIM'S, SAN FRAN CA^
12.2 THE OBSERVATORY, SANTA ANA, CA^
12.6 THE HOUSE CAFE, DEKALB IL
12.7 MAC'S BAR, LANSING MI
12.8 THE SMILING BUDDHA, TORONTO
12.9 IRON HORSE MUSIC HALL, NORTHAMPTON MA
^ with The Frights and Hockey Dad

Andrea Domanick is Noise's West Coast Editor. Follow her on Twitter.