Samiam Released New Single “Monterey Canyon”

Samiam have returned! The Oakland, CA punk legends recently announced, Stowaway, their first new album in 12 years, and today they’re sharing another single from the record, “Monterey Canyon.” Due out March 31st via Pure Noise Records, Stowaway picks up right where Samiam left off with all of the energy, melody, and pathos of their classic work, proving exactly why the group are still one of the most endearing and enduring punk bands of their generation. 

“Monterey Canyon” follows previous singles “Crystallized” and “Lights Out, Little Hustler” (which garnered attention from the likes of Stereogum, BrooklynVegan, Exclaim, and more), and provides another blast of crunchy guitars and massive hooks. The driving new track finds Samiam still in top form, with all of the melancholy-yet-uplifting catharsis that the group have always excelled at. 

Guitarist Sean Kennerly discussed the lyrics of “Monterey Canyon” saying: “This song is actually about parenting—octopus parenting that is. They recently discovered a deep sea octopus off the coast of California (in Monterey Canyon) who guards her brood of eggs without eating or leaving their side, nearly a mile beneath the surface, for a record 4 1/2 years—the longest known brooding period of any animal on earth. She basically just sits there guarding the eggs until they’re ready to hatch then she dies and floats off as they come to life. Is it a metaphor? Or an essentialization of the real sacrifices even human parents make in the chain of ongoing life? Or a kinda spooky ghost mom song about a deep sea octopus?”

From forming in the Oakland DIY punk scene in 1988, to eventually experiencing the major label alt rock feeding frenzy of the 1990s first hand, Samiam have experienced countless ups and downs in their 30+ years as a band. But their output has always remained incredibly consistent and Stowaway is no exception. Recorded piecemeal in different studios throughout the challenges of the past few years, the album reflects Samiam‘s knack for turning difficult circumstances into anthemic singalongs. Stowaway may reckon with time, failure, and frustration but in classic Samiam fashion, the hard luck stories are delivered via some of the band’s most energetic and hooky songs to date. “If you’re lucky, you get this sort of sense when you’re in a band that you’re participating in something that’s important to other people,” explains guitarist Sergie Loobkoff. “And I still get that with Samiam.” Stowaway might have been over a decade in the making, but it was well worth the wait.