Juan Wauters, co-founder of lo-fi band The Beets, is about ready to release Who, Me?, his new solo full-length of '60s-indebted folk-pop. Lead single "She Might Get Shot" is a nice example of his familiar melodies, screwball lyricism, and plain production—which is endearingly amateurish to the point of comedy. There's a moment of humble applause towards the end, as if the song was recorded live at a Lower East Side open mic night for a crowd of, like, seven people.
Wauters says the song was inspired by Julio Cortázar's bizarrely structured Spanish-language novel Rayuela, or "Hopscotch," which unfolds in 155 stream-of-consciousness segments. Wauters never finished reading it, which feels appropriate for some reason. "I liked it," Wauters told FADER in an email. "I didn't finish it, but I got very inspired by the characters and language used. It also takes place in Paris, a city that I like a lot." Below, watch an odd, cat-filled video teaser for Who, Me?, which drops May 12th on Captured Tracks, and check out Wauters' upcoming tour schedule, which include a few dates with Wilco's Jeff Tweedy.
Tour dates:
2/19 - Asheville, NC @ Tiger Mountain
2/20 - Nashville, TN @ The Stone Fox
2/21 - Atlanta, GA @ 529
2/23 - New Orleans, LA @ Gasa Gasa
2/24 - Memphis, TN @ Murphy's
2/26 - Pittsburgh, PA @ Brillobox
3/1 - Mexico City, MX @ NRMAL Festival
3/6 - Chicago, IL @ Vic Theatre ^
3/15 - Denton, TX @ Denton Music Festival
3/18-21 - Austin, TX @ SXSW
3/23 - Columbia, MO @ Cafe Berlin
3/24 - Lexington, KY @ Al's Bar
3/29 - Omaha, NE @ Sokol Auditorium ^
3/30 - Iowa City, IA @ Englert Theatre ^
^ = w/ Tweedy
Lead image: Nicole Ucedo
