They Get There (LIGHT BLUE CASSETTE) (Cassette)

The three years since Haybaby’s last full-length release have been tumultuous ones for the Brooklyn band. Following the high of its debut Sleepy Kids and subsequent EP Blood Harvest, singer/guitarist Leslie Hong’s father was diagnosed with cancer, which instigated a life-altering move to help him through an ultimately fatal battle with the disease. Over the same period, band members Sam Yield and Jeremy Duvall weathered heartaches of their own; and just when things seemed like they couldn’t get harder, the band’s tour van was incinerated in a random act of arson.

Writing and recording amidst the tragedy and turmoil, Haybaby’s sophomore LP They Get There unapologetically confronts legacies of harm. Whether it’s the intensely personal narrative of “Monster,” a tense reckoning with the lasting emotional repercussions of an abusive relationship, or in the unstoppable fury of “Witch Like Me,” a detonation of rage at the ongoing history of violence against women, it’s not surprising that this album contains some of the band’s most biting, unforgiving songs yet.

Perhaps what is most extraordinary is the abundance of everything else - the tenderness and lyricism in “Animosity,” or the playfulness in opener “Total Bore.” They Get There is a record where any spark can turn into a blaze, and where saplings grow in the midst of wildfires. It’s the work of a band that has experienced grief,
loss, anger, and arson. But instead of giving up or giving in, the trio has persevered and swallowed it all, converting the negative into fuel for hope. If Haybaby can get there, so can you

1. Total Bore 2. Monster 3. Witch Like Me 4. Animosity 5. Home 6. My Mother Tells Me 7. Empathy 8. You Got It, Steve! 9. Get Down 10. I'll Wait

• Released: 6/7/19
• Format Detail: Cassette Light Blue
• Format: Cassette
• Genre: Rock