PUP have released a pair of B-sides from the sessions for their 2022 album THE UNRAVELING OF PUPTHEBAND. Titled “How to Live with Yourself” and “Smoke Screen,” the previously unreleased tracks arrive as the band is touring Europe (grab tickets here).
“How to Live with Yourself” was the first song written for THE UNRAVELING and came out of the band looking to “start with something simple and fun,” vocalist/guitarist Stefan Babcock explained in a statement. As such, the song features upbeat, catchy melodies and lyrics about learning to “cut the cord” from a relationship, capturing “exactly what this band is about.”
In contrast, “Smoke Screen” slows down the pace without being any less hooky: “I’m just an old cord you don’t need anymore/ I wanna love you but you’ve changed.” Babcock said the song came from a riff by bassist Nestor Chumak, who wanted to do a “sludgey” version of PUP. He added, “I remember in the height of the pandemic sitting in the backseat of my car at the Home Depot parking lot, anything to try and escape the house, and writing and recording all the lyrics on the spot.”
Listen to both “How to Live with Yourself” and “Smoke Screen” below.
Back in October, the band released the live EP PUP Unravels Live in Front of Everyone They Know, containing six cuts from a run of 2022 shows in their native Toronto. PUP are currently on tour; see their full schedule below. Tickets to their upcoming Europe shows are available here, while you can grab seats for North American dates here.
PUP 2023 Tour Dates:
06/07 – Nickelsdorf, AU @ Novarock
06/09 – Donington, UK @ Download Festival
06/10 – Porto, PT @ Primavera Sound
06/16 – Toronto, ON @ Budweiser Stage
06/23 – Ysselsteyn, NL @ Jera On Air Festival
06/24 – Münster, DE @ Vainstream Festival
06/26 – Aarhus, DK @ VoxHall
06/28 – Essen, DE @ Zeche Carl
06/29 – Hannover, DE @ MusikZentrum
06/30 – Rotselaar, BE @ Rock Werchter
07/02 – Rotterdam, NL @ Metropolis
07/07 – Ottawa, ON @ Ottawa Bluesfest
07/08 – Sherbrooke, QC @ Sherblues & Folk
07/21 – Salt Lake City, UT @ Utah Is For Lovers,
07/22 – Denver, CO @ Colorado Is For Lovers
08/05 – Montreal, QC @ Osheaga Festival
09/11 – London, ON @ London Music Hall *
09/12 – Kalamazoo, MI @ Bell’s Eccentric Café *
09/14 – Detroit, MI @ The Majestic Theatre *
09/15-17 – Chicago, IL @ Riot Fest
* = w/ Snotty Nose Rez Kids
