Ratboys have signed to New West Records, marking the announcement with a frantically paced, sprawling track called ‘Light Night Mountains All That’. It features piano and production from Chris Walla. “My original idea was to write an ultra-high energy folk song, in the style of the Dodos’ Visiter, with somewhat spooky, mysterious, and pastoral lyrics — like what Chris Otepka of the Heligoats might conjure up on a mushroom trip,” Julia Steiner said in a statement. “This song really took shape during our initial writing session up at the Driftless Cabin in Wisconsin last March; the guys and I nearly went insane fleshing out the arrangement and its odd timings together. I wrote the lyrics during that original demoing trip, centered around the idea of a fantastic, rural vision-quest where the days and nights blend together and nothing is quite as it seems.”
This week, Chicago indie rockers Ratboys shared a new song, “Light Night Mountains All That,” and announced some new tour dates. They also announced that they have signed to a new label, New West Records.
Ratboys is singer/guitarist Julia Steiner, guitarist Dave Sagan, drummer Marcus Nuccio, and bassist Sean Neumann. The song also features piano by its co-producer Chris Walla (Death Cab for Cutie, Tegan and Sara, Foxing).
Following a heavy touring cycle that included opening for The Decemberists, Ratboys return with “Singin’ to An Empty Chair“. The 11-track album was produced by Chris Walla, the former Death Cab for Cutie member who also produced “The Window“.
Singer and guitarist Julia Steiner wrote most of the album after attending therapy for the first time. She was working through a difficult conversation with someone she is estranged from, using a technique called “Empty Chair.” The exercise involves imagining the person sitting across from you.
“The goal is to update this person on what’s been going on in my life and to try to bridge that impasse and reach out a hand into the void,” Steiner explained.
The album includes recent singles “Light Night Mountains All That”, “Anywhere”, and “What’s Right?”. They all hint at a natural evolution, sharpening the band’s emotional clarity without losing its melodic core.
Ratboys’ last album, “The Window”, was among the Top 100 Albums of 2023
The Fat Angel Sings 