''The Rhumb Line'' is the debut LP for the

Syracuse Syracuse most commonly refers to: * Syracuse, Sicily, Italy; in the province of Syracuse * Syracuse, New York, USA; in the Syracuse metropolitan area Syracuse may also refer to: Places * Syracuse railway station (disambiguation) Italy * Provi ...

-based

indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United Kingdom, United States and New Zealand in the early to mid-1980s. Although the term was originally used to describe rock music released through independent reco ...

band

Ra Ra Riot Ra Ra Riot is an American indie rock band consisting of vocalist Wes Miles, bassist Mathieu Santos, guitarist Milo Bonacci, violinist Rebecca Zeller and drummer Kenny Bernard. History Ra Ra Riot formed in January 2006, playing at houses and ve ...

. Recorded in late 2007 with

Ryan Hadlock Ryan Hadlock (born 1978) is an American record producer, best known for his production work on platinum-selling album '' The Lumineers'' by The Lumineers. Career Hadlock has been around music his entire life, as his parents Joe and Manny Hadl ...

Woodinville, WA Woodinville is a city in King County, Washington, United States. The population was 13,069 at the 2020 census. It is a part of the Seattle metropolitan area and is east of Bothell. Woodinville has waterfront parks on the Sammamish River, a wine ...

, the band released their debut album on August 19, 2008, through

Seattle Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...

-based indie label

Barsuk Records Barsuk Records ( ) is an independent record label based in Seattle, Washington which was founded in 1998 by Christopher Possanza and Josh Rosenfeld, the members of the band This Busy Monster, to release their band's material. Its logo is a draw ...

.Dave Maher
"Ra Ra Riot Sign to Barsuk, Reveal Debut Album"
''Pitchfork Media'', June 6, 2008. The album peaked at #109 on the ''Billboard'' 200. This album was ranked as the 38th best album of 2008 by ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

''.

Songs

The track listing includes the

Kate Bush Catherine Bush (born 30 July 1958) is an English singer, songwriter, record producer, and dancer. Bush began writing songs at age 11. She was signed to EMI Records after David Gilmour of Pink Floyd helped produce a demo tape. In 1978, at the ...

cover "

Suspended in Gaffa "Suspended in Gaffa" is a song recorded by English art rock singer Kate Bush. It was released as the fourth single from her fourth studio album ''The Dreaming'' (1982). "Suspended in Gaffa" was released as a single in continental Europe and Aust ...

". Other songs, "Ghost Under Rocks", "Each Year", " Dying Is Fine", and "Can You Tell", previously appeared on the band's 2007 self-titled EP. Also, during a WOXY.com ''Lounge Act'' session (January 30, 2008), the band showcased "Too Too Too Fast", "Oh, La", and "Run My Mouth". Several of the songs contained in the album are literary references such as "Each Year" which appears to be written about

Harper Lee Nelle Harper Lee (April 28, 1926 – February 19, 2016) was an American novelist whose 1960 novel ''To Kill a Mockingbird'' won the 1961 Pulitzer Prize and became a classic of modern American literature. She assisted her close friend Truman ...

's ''

To Kill a Mockingbird ''To Kill a Mockingbird'' is a 1960 Southern Gothic novel by American author Harper Lee. It became instantly successful after its release; in the United States, it is widely read in high schools and middle schools. ''To Kill a Mockingbird'' ...

'' and "Dying Is Fine" using the poem by

E. E. Cummings Edward Estlin Cummings (October 14, 1894 – September 3, 1962), commonly known as e e cummings or E. E. Cummings, was an American poet, painter, essayist, author, and playwright. During World War I, he worked as an ambulance driver and was ...

. "St. Peter's Day Festival" commemorates the loss of bandmate John Pike, who went missing in June 2007 but was later found dead in Buzzard's Bay. The album was named after The Rhumb Line, a bar in

Gloucester, Massachusetts Gloucester ( ) is a city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. It sits on Cape Ann and is a part of North Shore (Massachusetts), Massachusetts's North Shore. The population was 29,729 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. Census. ...

that is referenced in the lyrics of "St. Peter's Day Festival".

Track listing

All tracks written by

(Wes Miles, Mathieu Santos, Milo Bonacci, Alexandra Lawn, Rebecca Zeller), except where noted. # "Ghost Under Rocks" (John Pike, Ra Ra Riot) – 4:26 # "Each Year" (John Pike, Ra Ra Riot) – 3:16 # "St. Peter's Day Festival" (John Pike, Wes Miles) – 3:34 # "Winter '05" – 2:57 # " Dying Is Fine" (John Pike, Wes Miles,

) – 3:52 # "Can You Tell" – 2:42 # "Too Too Too Fast" (John Pike, Ra Ra Riot) – 3:46 # "Oh, La" – 4:42 # "

" (

) – 3:48 # "Run My Mouth" – 3:58.

Videos

* : Directed by

Albert Birney Albert Birney (born March 2, 1982) is an American filmmaker, writer, and animator best known for his visually imaginative and surreal films, including '' Strawberry Mansion'' (2021) and ''Sylvio'' (2017). His work blends hand-drawn animation, ab ...

, Nicholas Gurewitch, and Jon Moses. * "Ghost Under Rocks": Directed by

Brian Savelson Brian Savelson is an American writer, director, and producer who works in film, theater, and television. Savelson has written for numerous TV series including Amazon's The New Yorker Presents, Fox's Next, and Apple's Little America for which he ...

. * "Can You Tell": Directed by Taryn Gould and Emily Kowalczyk.

Personnel

* Wes Miles – vocals, keyboards * Mathieu Santos – bass guitar * Milo Bonacci – guitar * Rebecca Zeller – violin * Alexandra Lawn – cello * Cameron Wisch – drums

References

External links

Official websiteMySpace websiteBarsuk RecordsDaytrotter SessionWOXY.com Lounge Act Session
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rhumb Line, The Ra Ra Riot albums 2008 albums Albums recorded at Bear Creek Studio