Protomartyr release a new single/video, “Michigan Hammers,” off of their new album, Ultimate Success Today, out July 17th on Domino. Following “Worm in Heaven” and “Processed By The Boys,” “Michigan Hammers” is fierce with staccato guitar and thrashing percussion. Singer Joe Casey’s voice is forceful and insistent: “The Michigan Hammers are on their way // A chant from the end of the bar, not all of them on pills // Break apart the surface lot // What's been torn down can be rebuilt // What has been rebuilt can be destroyed.”
The accompanying video was directed by Yoonha Park, who was responsible for the band’s “Wheel of Fortune” and “Don't Go To Anacita” videos, and was built entirely of found stock footage. “This video is a retelling of a well-known Michigan folk tale that describes timeless themes of greed, power, death and rebirth and nothing short of the conflict of good and evil,” says Park.
Joe Casey further explains: "Couldn't make a ‘proper’ video due to the miasma. So why not make one using what tools remain? That's sort of what MICHIGAN HAMMERS is about I think - building with rubble. It's probably about that and mules, syndicates, too many parking lots, camaraderie, the ideal happy hour, failure, and takin' what they're givin' 'cause we're workin' for a livin' until we start takin' it to the streets. Or something like that."
Protomartyr is Joe Casey (vocals), Greg Ahee (guitars), Alex Leonard (drums), and Scott Davidson (bass guitar). Ultimate Success Today features guest musicians Nandi Rose (vocals) a.k.a. Half Waif, jazz legend Jemeel Moondoc (alto sax), Izaak Mills (bass clarinet, sax, flute), and Fred Lonberg-Holm (cello).