After a litany of intraband issues and being dropped from Topshelf Records, DC punk band Ekko Astral are stepping back to "recalibrate" and delaying their sophomore record the beltway is burning by an uncertain amount of time.

With this, the band also intends to withdraw from the lineup of their Liberation Weekend festival, but still encourage fans to attend and support trans issues. They will still be honoring their commitments to perform at Treefort Music Festival in Idaho later this month, as well as a short run opening for Mclusky in the days following.

The band's statement reads as follows:

"Hello friends,

At the end of March, we will be supporting mclusky on the West Coast, and playing Treefort Fest.

On that run, you can look forward to never-performed songs from our upcoming record, 'the beltway is burning'. We hope to see you all there. After these immediate commitments, Ekko Astral needs time to recalibrate.

We wanted to move by our original schedule, but we've realized we would benefit from more time and bandwidth to give beltway, our pride and joy, the moment it deserves. We are postponing the album and all other performances. To our fans, we're sorry for this delay. We appreciate all the support you've shown for this band.

Liberation Weekend II will still happen as planned. The event has the same great team behind last year, and we've been passing along roles to a growing team of volunteers who are making sure this fundraiser for trans rights and care is an absolute blast.

Ekko Astral is no longer playing Liberation Weekend II. We urge you to please still go. This festival has always been bigger than this band. Please share the event with your friends and family. Not only is this fest filled with incredible talent but it is vital to support trans rights, trans care, and trans art right now.

We will be back."