Ekko Astral on how Arctic Monkeys, Charli XCX, Jeff Rosenstock & more influenced their debut LP
DC band Ekko Astral formed in 2020, put out their debut EP QUARTZ in 2022, and today they release their debut album pink balloons via Topshelf. The album puts the “punk” in post-punk, it treasures noise as it much as it treasures pop, it’s got an orchestral spoken word track called “somewhere at the bottom of the river between l’enfant and eastern market” (La Dispute reference confirmed), it dips its toes into twee pop (“make me young”), and it saves the most epic song for last: a nearly-nine-minute collaboration with Josaleigh Pollett called “i90” that clashes between post-rock build-ups and anthemic singalongs.
Thematically, pink balloons is an apocalypse party. It’s a record inspired by the myriad reasons that it feels like the world is ending, and Ekko Astral remember to have fun with it. Singer Jael Holzman’s lyrics can be scathing and blunt, or full of pop culture references to Bon Iver and Molly Shannon, or delivered in a witty, observational style that she says was largely inspired by Arctic Monkeys. Jael’s experiences as a trans woman are inextricable from her songwriting, but she told Stereogum that she’s wary of the ways people might pigeonhole Ekko Astral because of her queerness and identity. “A lot of people have typecasted us around my trans identity without really listening to the messages in pink ballons when we send it to them,” she said. “This is an album for everybody about universal struggles that should not be put into a box.”
pink balloons is out today via Topshelf, and, for the occasion, Jael has made us a list of five albums that influenced it, with commentary on each pick. One is by the aforementioned Arctic Monkeys. Head below to stream pink balloons, watch the new “on brand” video, and read what Jael had to say about each of the influences.
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5 Albums That Influenced pink balloons
Charli XCX — Vroom Vroom EP
Sickest music I’ve ever heard. SOPHIE’s entire discography is etched into the back of my skull. It’s all about how she goes for the jugular of making you uncomfortable while sending you to the dancefloor. I could choose any of her albums but this collab is ultimately my favorite, because Charli’s high-gloss approach to melody and lyric is also a huge inspiration to me. Like, the way she says “those thugs know they can’t catch me” has had more of an impact on how I write my songs than any other piece of recorded music.
Jeff Rosenstock — WORRY.
We fucking love Jeff to death. You can hear it in everything we do. The hyperactive drumming, the skatepark power chords, the optimism for a better future and fuck-you attitude to the people in the way. He’s an especially important influence on our bassist Guinevere, who got made fun of in high school for loving Bomb the Music Industry!
Arctic Monkeys — Tranquility Base Hotel + Casino
Alex Turner’s approach to lyrics on this is one of my biggest inspirations — he gets so silly with it. It’s just so sincere, but at the same time it’s a concept album about a hotel on the moon and forces you to meet it on its own terms. Our lead guitarist Liam Hughes and I know all of the words to this one by heart, and we’ve had hotel security called on us for singing it too loudly at night. Those darn martini police.
Pure Adult — II
We met Jeremy Snyder of Brooklyn’s Pure Adult — who produced our record — when we started writing the album, and his band’s LP was coming out around the same time. It wound up deeply affecting all of us, both physically (made us sick with feeling) and mentally (rendered us newly invigorated to demolish the ruling class). Our mantra in the studio became what in my opinion is the best line on the album: “You can’t reform a bad form.”
Pretty Bitter — Hinges
You can’t have Ekko Astral without Pretty Bitter, a D.C. indie rock mainstay that includes our drummer Miri Tyler on bass and their partner, Em Bleker. This 2022 album about self-love and queer survival was a beacon to me and made me confident I could do music myself. Is it possible for an album to be a role model? I feel like you can’t listen to Hinges without feeling like a stronger person afterwards — which is what music is supposed to do.
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Ekko Astral’s upcoming tour dates include opening part of Ted Leo and the Pharmacists‘ Shake The Sheets 20th anniversary tour. That hits the NYC-area on June 19 at The Stone Pony in Asbury Park and June 23 at Warsaw in Brooklyn. All dates:
Ekko Astral — 2024 Tour Dates
Ekko Astral US Tour 2024 remaining dates
April 20, 2024 – Pittsburgh, PA @ Mr. Roboto Project
April 27, 2024 – Burlington, VT @ Monkey House
Ekko Astral US Tour supporting IDLES 2024
June 10, 2024 – Fort Lauderdale, FL @ Revolution Live
June 11, 2024 – Lake Buena Vista, FL @ House of Blues
June 13, 2024 – New Orleans, LA @ The Fillmore
Ekko Astral US Tour supporting Ted Leo and the Pharmacists 2024
June 19, 2024 – Asbury Park, NJ @ Stone Pony
June 20, 2024 – Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club
June 21, 2024 – Philadelphia, PA @ Union Transfer
June 22, 2024 – Boston, MA @ Paradise
June 23, 2024 – Brooklyn, NY @ Warsaw
