Stream: Dustin Lovelis, ‘She Drags Me Out’

Kevin Bronson on September 22nd, 2022

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Dustin Lovelis has honed his take on ’60s-styled psych-pop over three albums, not to mention other projects such as the R. Stevie Moore covers project released just before the pandemic.

Amiable as his aesthetic is, Lovelis never shies away from serious matters, whether they be a world asunder or personal life atilt. He referred to his 2020 album, “In Your Chamber,” as “a love letter to my son who, due to health complications, was never born,” and the attempts by he and his wife to become parents played in to his new album, “Drag Me Out,” out Friday via Park the Van and Porch Party Records.

“Shortly after the world shut down in 2020, my wife and I found out we were pregnant,” the Long Beach-based songwriter explains. “This came as quite a shock since we had lost a few pregnancies prior and were coming to terms with the idea of not having a child. After a few doctor visits we were confident this was actually going to happen. I knew my life was about to take a drastic turn with this addition, so I locked myself in my studio and began writing what would became my fourth LP.”

As with “In Your Chamber,” Lovelis worked with New York-based producer Sam Cohen (Kevin Morby, Alexandra Savior, Apollo Sunshine), albeit remotely. “Sam really helped this record come to life with the addition of some amazing lead guitar, drums, bongos and other instrumentation,” Lovelis says. “He even brought in some friends to play brass and some experimental synth sounds.”

Lovelis further explains that this album is less autobiographical, calling it “a roller coaster of happiness, grief, anticipation and commentary about the world we know today. … [And] reassuring myself in the third person that everything is going to be OK.”

As for the lead single, “She Drags Me Out,” Lovelis says, “This song is about my wife helping me get out of my head when I’m stuck.”

||| Stream: “She Drags Me Out”