The PurrS

All Of Us Right Now!

All Of Us Right Now!, the ninth full-length from Seattle psych-rock mainstays The Purrs, is a record charged with urgency, friction, and hard-won endurance.

Formed in 2000 after completing their lineup via a classified ad in The Stranger, The Purrs  have spent the last quarter century refining a galvanized blend of Brit-pop shimmer, blues-soaked shoegaze, and nocturnal punk romanticism. They’ve long operated as lifers of the Pacific Northwest club circuit; this is the kind of band that survives eras, scenes, and industry collapses without softening its edges. On All Of Us Right Now!, that fierce determination collides with the present moment.

 Infused with resolve and unease in equal doses, it is noir-pub swoon shot through with anxious electricity. Though the performances feel buoyant, bassist and lead vocalist Jima offers a blunt counterpoint: “I’ve never been more depressed and angrier in my life.” That tension fuels the record. Melding personal grievance and cultural indictment, it channels the disorientation of the COVID years, political fracture, and creative stall. “The specific inspirations for this album skew toward the shit that was going on with us since the last record,” Jima says. “COVID-19. The lockdown. The rise of the Right. The disruption of our workflow and the struggle to get our mojo back.”

If the themes are heavy, the execution is anything but. All four members contribute to the songwriting, and it comes through in locked grooves of the record. Guitarists Jason and Liz trade shimmer and abrasion, while drummer Dusty drives things forward with crisp restraint. Jason deliberately reshaped his sonic palette this time around: “I made an effort to play different guitars and pedals on this album, aiming for a dark-yet-dreamy vibe.” Longtime friend and producer Johnny Sangster (Mudhoney, The Posies) adds percussion flourishes (“various things none of us could be bothered to play,” Jima jokes) and the album was mastered by Ed Brooks at Resonant, grounding its haze in clarity.

Midway through, the band delivers a shoegaze-leaning take on Robyn Hitchcock’s “Queen Elvis,” drawn from his post-punk era. “I love the descending chord line, the ambiguous lyrics and overall melancholy of that song,” Jima says. “I thought it could do with a shoegazey version.” The album’s title comes from a lyric in “You’ll Thank Me Later.” “I try to make every album title draw from the lyrical content,” Jima explains. “I tend to look at albums as unnarrated slide shows of what the band was doing since the previous album. The listeners need to fill in the blanks.”

After nearly three decades, The Purrs remain emotionally unvarnished – animated equally by their own bruises and the world’s - while still reaching for connection in the dark. All Of Us Right Now! captures a veteran band refusing to acquiesce: romantic, restless, and very much awake.