MSTRKRFT announce new LP Operator, share lead single "Party Line"

The Toronto duo teased their return back in March with "Little Red Hen", their first single since 2011. "Party Line" is a pummeling barrage of noise and electronica, with gnarled vocals from Ian Svenonius.

Work began on the new album in late 2013, and MSTRKRFT eventually plucked 10 tracks from "hundreds of hours of music".

“The ‘operator’ concept for us was essential in the creation of the music on this album, but I’m not sure what came first, the title or the idea,” says the outfit's Jesse F. Keeler. “While browsing military related websites and blogs, mostly consisting of vets talking to each other like any civilian I suppose, I noticed repeated reference to something they called 'operator culture'. It seemed to be something that was sometimes laughed at, sometimes caused disdain, but was referenced constantly and seemed to be understood by everyone. I came to believe the operator concept is one of detachment.”

“For example, an operator of a tank referring to himself as merely the operator, rather than defining himself by what he is actually doing with the tank,” Jesse continues. “‘Operating’ a sniper rifle would seem to be a much easier concept to deal with than the reality of what being a successful sniper means. In the comfort of our rehearsal space, we had been going through a similar phase of discovering detachment. As we had decided to work entirely with hardware, all our old drum machines and modular synth collection, we had begun to feel more like operators than musicians.”

Operator is out 22 July via Last Gang.

Listen to "Party Line" below. The LP's tracklist is afterwards.

Tracklist:

1. Wrong Glass Sir
2. Runaway
3. Little Red Hen
4. Priceless
5. Playing With Itself
6. Party Line
7. Death In The Gulf Stream
8. World Peace
9. Morning Of The Hunt
10. Go On Without Me