Pond have returned with their first release since 2022.
“Neon River” opens a new era for the psychedelic rock band, who describe their track better than anyone else could.
“This is a full on Pond Gemini song,” they say. “Kinda tumbles through bucolic Gum [Jay Watson] larping, into Nick [Allbrook] in maximum Aerosmith spandex mode, with a brief detour into some kind of shoegaze instrumental section. The chorus is about the hollow half dead riverside shuffle of so many pre pawns of years gone by.”
I couldn’t have put it better myself. “Neon River” is accompanied by a music video featuring a medieval LARP (Live Action Role Play) troupe meeting a lonely wanderer who leads them on a journey to fulfil their destiny. You can watch the clip, which was shot on 16mm film, below.
“Neon River” follows Pond’s last album, 9, which came out back in 2021. 9 became the band’s highest charting album in their home country to date, reaching number six on the Australian Albums Chart.
“Neon River” comes ahead of a busy period of touring for Pond. After supporting Queens of the Stone Age in Australia and New Zealand in February and March, they’ll head to the US for a rescheduled tour that was originally supposed to take place last year. They’ll then tour around Europe and the UK later this year (tour information here).
One member of Pond, Nicholas Allbrook, featured on Rolling Stone AU/NZ last month for his collaboration with Perth indie pop trio San Cisco. Allbrook brought his signature vocals to the chorus of San Cisco’s new single “Summer Days”. He also released a solo album, Manganese, in 2023. “I feel like Australia as a whole suffers from a collective moral injury that puts a block on our emotional, social, cultural development,” Allbrook said about his album at the time of release.
Pond’s “Neon River” is out now.
