Gold-selling hard rockers Of Mice & Men — Aaron Pauley (bass + vocals ), Valentino Arteaga (drums), Alan Ashby (guitar), and Phil Manansala(guitar) — previously announced their new album Tether on October 6 via SharpTone. Pre-order it here.
Today, they have shared the "Castaway" video. Watch it below.
"'Castaway' is about longing for connection with the people in our lives who tend to distance themselves when dealing with hardships, and how our inability to help them often feels like we're frozen in time," the band says.
Taking all creative matters into their own hands, the Southern California quartet self-produced and engineered all of the songs on Tether, their astonishing eighth album. Pauley mixed and mastered the album while Arteaga designed and painted the album's artwork. As a legion of devoted listeners worldwide has come to expect, guitarists Phil Manansala and Alan Ashby, Aaron, and Tino poured their hearts and souls into every note, creating another sonic document of their lives.
“With this one, we weren’t really focused on how it sounded as much as we focused on how it felt," Pauley explains. "And that's a weird thing to do when all you're working with is sound. But that was really the goal. And we walked away from making it, feeling like we've accomplished that."
OM&M take sobering looks at depression, anxiety, loneliness, and existential dread, powering through the darkness, and emphasizing the importance of creativity as a balm for mental health. A commanding tempest of sounds coalesces within Of Mice & Men, blending the uplifting eloquence of modern active rock with the atmospheric dissonance of experimental post-rock. The band first emerged as part of a vanguard of future aggressive rock hitmakers. Over the years, they've distinguished themselves with musicality, creative ambition, and resilient determination.
Album eight is no less ambitious. Tether is anchored by a reflective meditation on what it means to draw together as friends, family men, artists, and bandmates. What does it mean to be there for the people who depend on us, knowing we can’t fully protect them from the hardships of life?
Tether is the next step in OM&M's evolution, combining their core sound with experimental and ethereal sound designs. The creative process focused on the excitement of discovery rather than preconceived "goals." Pursuing the moments when the elusive "x factor" reveals itself in the songs. Those moments are palpable in songs like "Integration," "Warpaint," "Enraptured," and "Indigo."
The Of Mice & Men core since 2016 – Aaron, Alan, Tino, and Phil – maintain a powerful bond with their audience and each other, no matter the obstacles. Whether a powerful anthem or atmospheric confession, their songs translate in intimate clubs and massive festivals. "It's about creating moments for people," Pauley says. "Music is the soundtrack to people's lives."
OM&M will also hit the road with Bullet For My Valentine and Vended this fall. All dates are below.
OF MICE & MEN ON TOUR:
WITH OF BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE + VENDED:
9/8 — Alton, VA — Blue Ridge Rock Festival*
10/8 — Montreal, QC — Mtelus
10/10 — Worcester, MA — The Palladium
10/12 — New York, NY — Terminal 5
10/13 — Silver Spring, MD — The Fillmore Silver Spring
10/15 — Philadelphia, PA — Franklin Music Hall
10/17 — Pittsburgh, PA — Stage AE
10/18 — Cleveland, OH — The Agora
10/19 — Cincinnati, OH — The Andrew J. Brady Music Center
10/21 — Kansas City, MO — Uptown Theater
10/22 — Chicago, IL — Riviera Theatre
10/24 — Minneapolis, MN — The Fillmore Minneapolis
10/26 — Denver, CO — Mission Ballrom
10/28 — Flagstaff, AZ — Pepsi Amphitheater
10/29 — San Diego, CA — SOMA Mainstage
10/31 — Los Angles, CA — The Wiltern
11/1 — Phoenix, AZ — The Van Buren
11/2 — Albuquerque, NM — Revel Entertainment Center
11/4 — San Antonio, TX — Boeing Center At Tech Port
11/5 — Dallas, TX — House of Blues Dallas
11/7 — Houston, TX — House of Blues Houston
11/8 — New Orleans, LA — The Fillmore New Orleans
11/10 — Orlando, FL — Hard Rock Live Orlando
*Festival Date