As we near the release date for their new album, Let Me Do One More, illuminati hotties deliver a new slow-burning single. The local tenderpunk band, helmed by Sarah Tudzin, recently announced a tour accompanying Death Cab For Cutie, as well as a local show at Zebulon to celebrate the new record. The unhurried new track “Threatening Each Other Re: Capitalism” confronts subtle disasters of late-stage capitalism with nuance; follow along with the lyric video below.

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Whether singing seriously about self-loathing or shouting satire about our present day, Tudzin never misses an opportunity to throw in some fun vocalization. The softest aah’s of all can be found in the new single, matching the track’s mood and tempo. Heavy guitar tones bubble up in rare moments as if to spur the heavy emotion in the verses.

“‘Threatening Each Other re: Capitalism’ makes haste of a machine by which we’ve all been fooled as well as the people who have fooled themselves into thinking they’ve not participated in it,” shares Tudzin.

Though there is no narrative throughline, themes of waste and guilt and hopelessness resonate from start to finish. The lyrics are littered with intimate details that could be self-referential (is Illuminati Hotties worried about selling out?) or meant as a mirror (what long-term commitments have I been tricked into?). “Isn’t that genius?” Tudzin mockingly repeats, conjuring images of Silicon Valley start-ups that pat themselves on the back for innovation—which routinely turns dystopic.

The song ends with a parable of sorts, taking us to the farmer’s market where they have a new service. The stanza provides a morbid punchline to the claim of “genius” in each chorus, reinforcing just how ineffective and downright cruel the capitalist system has become. These days, it rots like pre-cut produce.

Pre-order or pre-save Let Me Do One More here, out on October 1st, 2021 via Snack Shack Tracks in partnership with Hopeless Records. Get tickets to Illuminati Hotties’ upcoming LA gig at Zebulon and more tour dates. Also! Illuminati Hotties will perform a very special album release show at Permanent Records on October 1st. Entry for this gig will be FREE upon purchase of Let Me Do One More on vinyl.