Current Release:
dagger: February 2, 2024 (RD)

Upcoming Release:
Open Door Policy: June 2024 (Candlepin Records)

Previous Releases on Rue Defense:
Goodbye Sunrise: August 4, 2023
Songs From the Money Pit: November 18, 2022
Plays Some Built to Spill Songs: July 2022
What Happens Next?: December 2021
Bleecker & Broadway: June 2020

Previous Releases on Forged Artifacts:
Credits: April 2021
S/T: September 2019
happy bday: October 2019
3: December 2017
Had a Dream: April 2017
Covers: June 2016
Yucca Street: Februrary 2016
(the dog tape): April 2015
Santa Cruz EP: May 2014

Label: Forged Artifacts/Rue Defense/Candlepin Records
Genre: Bedroom Pop, Lofi, DIY
Influences: Doug Martsch, Martin Newell, Dean Wareham, R. Stevie Moore, David Berman
Location: New York

dagger
(Album - Released Feb. 2, 2024)

Goodbye Sunrise
(Album - Released Aug. 4, 2023)

What Time Is It?
(Single - Released Jul. 7, 2023)

Froze Up
(Single - Released Jul. 18, 2023)

Songs From The Money Pit
(Album-Released Nov. 18, 2022)

Buildings Furniture(Single-Released Oct. 14, 2022)

Rue Defense · Alexei Shishkin - Buildings Furniture

Press Contact: Graham Bell
253.948.7647
whoisruedefense@gmail.com

“dagger was home-recorded in Queens, NY, in December 2023. The songs are mostly ‘stream-
of-consciousness’ style experiments that started with drum tracks as the foundations (thank you
to the folks at Drum Drops).

From there I layered whatever seemed right over them, and before I
knew it there were 10 songs.

The album art is a photo by Graham W. Bell of a basketball in mid-air at Rosemary's Playground
off the Forest Ave M train stop.

I've always like the idea of a game-clinching shot being called a ‘dagger’, so I figured this was a great time to use that as an album name.“ -AS, Feb. 2024

Credits:
music + lyrics: Alexei Shishkin
drums: Timmy Rickard, Ben Hampson, Steve Taylor
drum engineering: Ben Thackeray, Ben Hillier, Billy Halliday
mastering: Conor Ryan
special thanks: Graham W. Bell, Connor Hickey

Self-described as “a label’s worst nightmare”, Alexei Shishkin can often be found playing pickup soccer in a Ridgewood park or doubling down on a soup and sandwich combo, but you’ll never see him take the stage.

Shishkin’s style is equal parts prolific and poignant. Bringing an improvisational air to the bedroom slacker pop sound of the 90s and early 00s, his ability to build intersectional compositions from jazz voicings, simple loops, and musings on daily life results in a cathartic rush of content that is nowhere near slowing down.

By embracing the rough edges and eschewing performance in favor of creation, his musically reclusive style has fed on itself and grown into a singular voice all its own.

Taking cues from his experimental tacts seen on previous releases like Buildings Furniture, Shishkin returns to his bedroom rock roots with a healthy dose of neo-soul sensibilities. In first single “What Time Is It?”, the jazz-inflected stylings are cut through by lilting background vocals provided by Katie Callihan (who features on several other tracks on the album), while Shishkin’s own lackadaisical delivery drives forward.

The album serves as a medley of styles and moods that bounce from reverie to raucous as the tracks paint a picture of the constant inspiration, frustration, and consternation found in Shishkin’s 21st century New York.

Buildings Furniture:
The first single from Alexei Shishkin's upcoming experimental album "Songs from the Money Pit" combines new elements like afrobeat drums, trumpet, and purposefully-autotuned vocals with the musician's signature jazz-inflected guitar. Presented as a slice-of-life conversation between two characters, it evolves into a dreamy, hazy duet.

Locked Out:
The second single from Alexei Shishkin's 'Songs From The Money Pit', the groovy 'Locked Out' embraces purposeful experimentation on the part of the musician with obvious auto-tune and a variety of drum configurations. Like the album as a whole, 'Locked Out' is an exploration of afrobeat rhythms and instrumentation that diverges from Shishkin's previous outings. A singer-songwriter at heart, his ability to infuse jazz-inflected guitar and laidback lyrics about daily life into catchy arrangements has proved Shishkin a true auteur time and time again.

Songs From The Money Pit:

Credits:
Drums - Timmy Rickard, Monosole Music
Trumpet - Patryk Rynkiewicz
Backing Vocals - Katie Dwyer
Everything Else - Alexei Shishkin

Mixed by Bill Waters at Small Bad Studios
Mastered by Bradford Krieger at Big Nice Studios
Released on Rue Defense (Brooklyn/Houston)