For the last few years, Buffalo, New York’s Lemuria have celebrated the holidays by listing a “Secret LP” on their merch site, with past years including a 12″ version of their first demo, and other outtakes. This year, the listing was no different, leaving many fans to expect another collection of songs that were left on the cutting room floor for one reason or another, with about 700 people shelling out cash for a physical copy. What they couldn’t have possibly known was that they were pre-ordering Lemuria’s new LP Recreational Hate, and will be the first to get the limited physical release of the album this week, before it is even available digitally on December 15.
The album was produced in secret by four-time Grammy award-winner Chris Shaw (Weezer, Bob Dylan, and A Tribe Called Quest) and before it hits the mailboxes of 700 fans, our first taste comes in the form of “Wanted To Be Yours.” It’s a really interesting track that sounds like it could have been plucked from 90’s alternative radio, and is certainly promising for an LP that was kept entirely under wraps. Check it out below.
Fans who unexpectedly ordered the “Secret LP” will receive a letter explaining the project and its goals, but you can read it in full now:
Thanks to everyone who took a gamble and purchased the “secret LP” we put up for sale back in August. We’re excited to unveil that the LP you ordered is our new studio album, “Recreational Hate”. Your trust and subsequent purchase enabled us to achieve some great feats with this release, including working with the 4-time Grammy winning producer and engineer Chris Shaw. We chose to work with him, in part, for his very eclectic discography, including the Weezer “Blue” album, Bob Dylan, Leonard Cohen, Ice Cube, Wilco, Public Enemy, Modest Mouse, A Tribe Called Quest, Ween and Lou Reed. You also gave us the opportunity to launch Turbo Worldwide, our new record label and home base for all things Lemuria. As a “thank you”, you are receiving the LP approximately the same time as this announcement, 2 months before the album reaches the shelves of your local record store.
A few years back, we thought it would be fun to place some very old songs (our CD-R-only demo) on an LP, and put it up for sale as a mysterious “Secret” release. Whoever bought this wouldn’t know what they ordered until it arrived in the mail and they spun it on their record player. We held no expectations as to what the response would be, however it was overwhelmingly positive, and the folks who received this special item seemed to enjoy the fun and mystery as much as we did. We tried various iterations of this in years to come, and we noticed that, each time we did, it was a similar group of friends and supporters who jumped on the opportunity. It’s the same group of folks who tirelessly support our shows, support our releases, and are our motivating force that inspire us to keep actualizing our passion. We don’t, not even for a second, take this amount of trust and support for granted. As a thank you, when we were planning the release for “Recreational Hate”, we decided to go this secretive route once again in hopes that a similar investment from you would turn into an even bigger reward of a full-length studio album.
These songs represent our next step forward. It has been a wild adventure for us to arrive to this moment of releasing the album. Thank you for traveling with us.
Love,
Lemuria
Recreational Hate is out digitally on 12/15 via Asian Man Records and Big Scary Monsters, with another round of vinyl set for a February release.
