Pinkshift share ‘Reflections’ and ‘Don’t Fight’ double single

Maryland trio PINKSHIFT will drop their new album “EARTHKEEPER” on August 29 via Hopeless Records. Pre-order it here.

Recently, the band has shared the double single “Reflections” + “Don’t Fight.” Listen here. Watch the “Don’t Fight” video here.

The songs showcase the dual nature of the album and, ultimately, the band. “‘Don’t Fight’ and ‘Reflection’ are opposite ends of Earthkeeper,” singer Ashrita Kumar says. “They kind of balance each other out. ‘Don’t Fight’ is grief ignited by anger, and’ Reflection’ is softness in power.”

Kumar continues, “‘Don’t Fight’ came from an idea [guitarist] Paul [Vallejo] brought to the band, and that’s him singing the choruses. They inspired me in a time of grieving, and I felt drawn to something less melodic. My verses are more like shouted poems, feeling a sense of discord and anguish. ‘Reflection’ is, on the other hand, written from a place of feeling softness and lightness. That reflection is the presence of the Earthkeeper, my friends beyond the veil, and my ancestors. I feel the grief of their loss, but maybe our relationship is more magical now in ways that I can’t understand all the time. Their time on Earth, in my life, shaped who I am today. That version of me can choose how I’d like to see the world.”

A true balance, indeed.

During a pit stop while travelling between shows in 2023, Pinkshift found a huge fallen redwood tree. Vocalist Ashrita Kumar (they/them), guitarist Paul Vallejo (he/him), and drummer Myron Houngbedji (he/him) lay down on the trunk, staring up at the canopy of leaves from the trees around them. What followed is an experience Kumar describes as almost psychedelic. They felt as if the trees were inviting them to stay there forever. “I heard these voices telling me that I’m welcome here,” they recall. “And everything I could ever want is in this space.”

Earthkeeper is a record that bursts at the seams with big riffs, big feelings, and big ideas. At its core is a spiritual being whose name gives the record its title — “a reflection of universal consciousness and a protector of existence.” It’s a patchwork of anxiety, angst, grief, and hope, juggling experiences both personal and existential across themes such as loss, one’s individual purpose, and what it means to watch the notion of a stable life collapse before your eyes.

Crucially, Ashrita, Paul, and Myron are not the same people that they were when they made their 2022 debut Love Me Forever. They’ve grown, matured, and been altered by experience. They crafted their debut at a time where they didn’t have as much experience playing live as they do now. “The first album was influenced a lot by stuff we grew up listening to because we’d never really toured,” offers Myron. “It’d really cool that now, after all this touring, there’s bits and pieces of all these bands we wouldn’t otherwise have listened to that have weaved their way into our songwriting.”

Lumped in with an emerging pop-punk resurgence at the turn of the decade that they never quite identified with, they’ve broken out of those confines by writing a significantly heavier record that could not fall under that umbrella in almost any possible way. In some ways, this was a product of their evolving tastes, and a more accurate reflection of who they are musically.

All three of them brought new influences into the studio. “Myron and I got really into Loathe and Knocked Loose,” adds Paul. “It inspired me to pick up the baritone guitar that I had, playing in lower tunings. I love the direction that the metal scene is going in and if I could reflect that in any way with respect to the guitar playing that was going on, I’d jump at every opportunity.”

If there was a mission statement to Earthkeeper, this would be it. They stand for unity, collectivity, community, and action, but above all, the Maryland trio are hoping their new songs can have a more personal, emotional resonance too. “I think with this record, I’m trying to inspire you to, give a fuck,” Ashrita concludes. “You’re worth giving a fuck about. I feel like people don’t give a fuck about themselves but in the same way those redwood trees told me I’m welcome here, you matter and you belong here.”

Pre-order here

EARTHKEEPER TRACK LISTING:

01. Love It Here
02. Anita Ride
03. Evil Eye
04. Don’t Fight
05. Patience
06. Spiritseeker
07. Blood
08. Freefall
09. Suspended
10. Reflection
11. Vacant
12. Something More