At the time of this single’s release, it really doesn’t feel that long since Fred Abong released his ‘Fear Pageant’ album. That makes sense, as it’s only been eight months since the world last heard new music from the former Throwing Muses and Belly man.

Ahead of a new album (‘Blindness’, scheduled for release on May 9th), Fred has shared a new track, ‘Heaven’, and the full video can be seen below.

Since ‘Heaven’ works a very clean sounding, shimmering guitar throughout an extended intro and finds the Rhode Island musician exploring a classic dream pop sound, before introducing a world of downbeat singer songwriter vibes, early indications suggest that parts of ‘Blindness’ could be as different from 2022’s ‘Yellowthroat’ as that album was from Abong’s earlier lo-fi experiments.

Those who’ve followed his solo progress certainly won’t feel alienated by this first single, however. It has a few moments that still feel familiar. Firstly, there’s Fred’s understated but distinctive vocal, and that fills the bulk of this number with deep, natural sounds that are the natural successor to ‘Yellowthroat’. Then there’s the melody itself, and the darker moments certainly tally with a mood that fans have come to expect, and the brief acoustic flourish at this song’s end even gives a nod to Abong’s earlier solo sketches. Perhaps most strikingly of all, whether intentional or not, is the main hook’s concession to the ‘Lady In The Radiator Song’ from David Lynch’s classic mind-bender ‘Eraserhead’. “Heaven”, in this instance, almost seems to naturally want to slide into that melody, and once heard, cannot be unheard.

Overall, for a track that seems typically minimalst, it gives Abong’s fans a reasonable amont to absorb and dissect. Like the best material on his two previous albums, this song’s textures will present themselves gradually, and over time, the slow burning mood will eventually burrow under the skin.