Kazu Makino and the Pace twins have announced a companion piece to 2023's tenth Blonde Redhead album Sit Down For Dinner.

Out digitally on June 27 via section1, The Shadow of the Guest features choral reworking and ASMR experiments of several tracks, plus "Oda a Coda", a mariachi-inspired remake of older cut "For the Damaged Coda", made internet-famous by Rick & Morty. A limited physical release of the album will follow in the fall.

The first track to drop from the album is a reworking of "Before" featuring the soulful Brooklyn Youth Chorus. Listen below:

Makino says the track was originally written with a choir in mind and that she was bowled over by their talent:

“Ability, professionalism and cuteness overload of the soulful Brooklyn Youth Chorus made me fall offthe chair multiple times during the recordings. Even when they were exhausted, they were soooo good and sweet, with incredible work ethics. They inspire me to do better and I hope to sing with them one day live!” 

She goes on to say in the press release that the project started out as a soundtrack that she was producing for a fashion show by her close friend, French designer Isabel Marant:

“I often play her my early demos and things that I am making and I told her I want to make ASMR using parts and fragments of our songs. It was such a great musical exercise for me. She came with me to the studio in Paris, wrote phrases in French and we had a good laugh at my pronunciation. This is an important release for us. They are not just a rendition of the latest but a long time dream that finally came true.” 

The Shadow of the Guest is out June 27. Full tracklist below:

1. Rest of Her Life (Choir version)
2. Before (Choir version)
3. Via Savona (Choir version)
4. Coda (Choir version)
5. Kiss Her Before the Snow Melts (ASMR)
6. Good Morning Sunshine (ASMR)
7. Good Night Til Tomorrow (ASMR)
8. Oda a Coda

US fans can catch Blonde Redhead on tour with Bloc Party later this month and into June. They'll then return to Europe:

05/30 Boston, MA @ MGM Music Hall at Fenway *
05/31 New York, NY @ Forest Hills Stadium *
06/02 Washington, DC @ The Anthem *
06/04 Philadelphia, PA @ The Met *
06/06 Cincinnati, OH @ Woodward Theater *
06/07 Detroit, MI @ Fox Theatre *
06/08 Chicago, IL @ The Salt Shed *
06/09 Minneapolis, MN @ The Armory *
06/11 Denver, CO @ Red Rocks Amphitheatre *
06/12 Salt Lake City, UT @ The Union *
06/14 Berkeley, CA @ The Greek Theatre *
06/16 Portland, OR @ Theater of the Clouds *
06/17 Woodinville, WA @ Chateau Ste. Michelle Winery *
06/27 Angers, FR @ Levitation Festival
06/28 Biarritz, FR @ Atabal
06/30 Milan, IT @ Parco Musica Milano
07/01 Bologna, IT @ Bonsai Garden
07/02 Zurich, CH @ Rote Fabrik
07/04 Herouville St Clair, FR @ Festival Beauregard
07/17 Dour, BE @ Dourfestival
07/19 Herk de Stad, BE @ Rock Herk
08/20–23 Torremolinos, ES @ Canala Party Festival

* with Bloc Party

The Needle Drop may earn an affiliate commission via purchases on ticket links through this article.