Everything’s a grind, right? Eking out a living, maintaining our jobs, maintaining our relationships, releasing a new five-song EP that deals with the very concept of grinding and working and working some more until our bodies fail and we’re left with nothing but moments of fleeting happiness peppered over a gruel-colored swath of work, work, work. (How’s your week been going?)
Anyway, The Keystones know a thing or two about the last bit. The tireless Milwaukee rockers have spent the last few months releasing songs from their upcoming five-song EP Do You Work Hard Enough? First came “The Wolf Of Walgreens.” Then came “Suckerpunch.” Then “Red And Blue.” And now, out today, “SHINJUKU.” The synth-flavored track is our favorite new Keystones offering yet (though the title of “The Wolf Of Walgreens” is definitely an all-timer).
“We’ve been talking a lot about American capitalism in this EP—how frustrated people are by working long hours for increasingly stagnant pay,” says Keystones singer Jack Sherman in a press release. “But there’s a whole world out there, and we’re not alone in our work-to-live mindset. ‘SHINJUKU’ is our way of responding to deeply ingrained aspects of Japanese culture that mirror our own. Take ‘Salarymen,’ for example—white-collar workers who are often portrayed in film and other media as showing unwavering loyalty to their employers in lieu of making deeper community and familial connections.”
Do You Work Hard Enough? will drop in May, and a deluxe version with additional tracks will follow in summer. On the live front, The Keystones are staying busy, too: April shows at X-Ray Arcade and Falcon Hall will be preceded by a trip to Austin for South by Southwest. While there, The Keystones will be part of an official Milwaukee showcase featuring other local heavy hitters like Social Cig, NilexNile, Wave Chapelle, Scam Likely, and Joey Turbo. (That’s a hell of a lineup.) KEEP GRINDING, FOLKS.
View this post on Instagram
Want more Milwaukee Record? Subscribe to our free weekly newsletter and/or support us on Patreon.
RELATED ARTICLES
• ‘Tis the season for new Keystones song, Keystones holiday show at The Cooperage