Mar 09, 2023

By Caleb Campbell

Photography by Andrew Hallenberg

New York-based indie outfit Laveda are back later this year with their forthcoming sophomore LP, A Place You Grew Up In, due out April 14th via Papercup Music. Founded by the duo of Ali Genevich and Jake Brooks, the band debuted in 2020 with their full-length record What Happens After, which found them lacing together hazy shades of shoegaze and dream pop. The band also followed the record last year with a one-off single, “bb.”

However, the band’s forthcoming sophomore effort sees them expanding their musical horizons in lush new directions, inspired by a diverse range of influences including ‘90s alt rock touchstones like The Sundays, the slacker rock guitars of Pavement, and the adventurous production of Low. Simultaneously, the band also explores themes of lost innocence and an uncertain collective future.

As Genevich explains, “A Place You Grew Up In is like a time-capsule in my memory. 2020 and 2021 felt like adulthood had crawled out from a dark cave somewhere in the woods to slowly flood my mind with 24/7 anxieties. It began with the pandemic, then Jake’s mom who had been battling stage four cancer got worse. She passed on New Year’s Day 2021. There was a lot of grief paired with drinking. Many days felt monotonous, though some were filled with writing and demoing.”

Laveda spent last year sharing a series of new singles from the record, and today the band is back with their latest single, “Troy Creeps,” premiering with Under the Radar.

“Troy Creeps” sees the band settling into a steady indie rock groove, tinged with spiraling synths and an anthemic chorus. Genevich’s vocals recall hints of ‘90s-inspired indie singer/songwriters like Snail Mail, Soccer Mommy, or Jay Som, yet the track’s shimmering textures and soaring chorus both break that mold for some magnetic detours into pop songwriting. The band conjures a delicate balance between creeping anxiety and iridescent hooks, layering both on in equal measure.

That otherworldly sheen is meant to embody “a long night spent alone with your thoughts” according to Genevich. Brooks adds of how the track, “When I made this demo I had just moved to a small apartment in Troy, NY. You could always hear everyone’s conversations if they were outside on that street. People were screaming at each other about something while I was recording so the name stuck.”

Check out the song and video below. A Place You Grew Up In is out everywhere on April 14th via Papercup Music.