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May 24, 2024 By Mark Redfern Photography by Wyndham Garrett

La Luz have released a new album, News of the Universe, today via Sub Pop. Now they have shared its fourth single, “Always in Love,” via a music video. Plus you can stream the album and read our review of it. Check out the video and album stream below. Read our review, which we posted this morning, here.

The band is led by guitarist, singer, and songwriter Shana Cleveland. She had this to say about the new single in a press release: “To me this song is the heart of the album. I get emotional every time I hear it. Lyrically it’s about realizing that love is the only thing that matters and that it’s always a choice that I’m able to make. It’s hard to explain how huge that is, but if you get it you get it. In the guitar solo that closes the song I can hear myself blasting through all the fear and stress of the year before, the most difficult time of my life, and moving past all of that propelled by the dedication to live in love. The video for this song is inspired by the Japanese camp horror film House.”

Previously La Luz shared the album’s first single, “Strange World,” via a music video. “Strange World” was one of our Songs of the Week. Then they shared its second single, “Poppies,” which was also one of our Songs of the Week. Then they shared its third single, “I’ll Go With You,” via a music video. It was again one of our Songs of the Week.

News of the Universe follows 2021’s La Luz, which was released on Hardly Art, Sub Pop’s sister label, which makes this their debut on Sub Pop proper.

Cleveland was diagnosed with breast cancer two years after the birth of her son, which led to the postponement of shows in 2022.

“Seeing the cycle of life, seeing things grow out of decay, the decay of other living things—was super comforting to me. I had to get to a place where I felt more comfortable with the idea of death,” Cleveland said of the new album in a previous press release.

News of the Universe features a changing of the guard in terms of La Luz’s lineup—it’s the first appearance for drummer Audrey Johnson and the final ones from longtime members Lena Simon (bass) and Alice Sandahl (keyboards).

La Luz worked with producer Maryam Qudos (Spacemoth) on the album and the collaboration went so well that Qudos has joined the band as their new keyboardist.

“There are moments on this album that sound to me like the last frantic confession before an asteroid destroys the earth,” said Cleveland, summing up News of the Universe.

Read our 2021 interview with La Luz.

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