HighSchool, the effusively-hyped Naarm/Melbourne-raised, now-London-based post-punk outfit, today announce their forthcoming second studio EP, Accelerator, and unveil their latest single and video “Doesn’t Matter”, out now via [PIAS]. Out April 19, the release of Accelerator looks set to assert HighSchool’s full arrival and propel the duo from one of Australian indie’s best-kept secrets to much-fawned-over breakout stars.
On the follow-up to their cult-classic 2021 debut EP Forever At Last, the band deliver five tracks of emotionally charged, elliptical songwriting that conjures the tangible aura of their post-punk forebears as filtered through a lens of contemporary lo-fi bedroom pop. Having spent the intervening years patiently polishing their sound across Melbourne and their adopted home of London, Accelerator poses as a seamless continuation of their debut EP’s arc. It finds HighSchool continuing to hone their combination of low-slung instrumentation and propulsive rhythm sections with hook-replete pop nous and evocative layers of spectral, saturnine atmosphere.
Produced by rising London producer Finn Billingham, mixed by GRAMMY-winning engineer Philippe Weiss (Earl Sweatshirt, Nas, Drake) and mastered by Blur and Depeche Mode producer Ben Hillier, Accelerator pulls effortlessly from the gamut of indie rock history, from shoegaze and dream-pop to new wave, slowcore, jangle pop, slacker rock, art pop and beyond.
Awash in reverb and spacious production, latest single “Doesn’t Matter” feels like peering into the window of heartbreak’s bedroom – lovelorn, enigmatic and intensely private, yet indescribably alluring nonetheless. On the track, the band share that “Doesn’t Matter is a song about unrequited love. It’s about your beloved being unaware or uncaring of your affection and deep desire for them. It’s about longing and the places your imagination takes you when you yearn for someone.”
Unfurling with steady, driving percussion, loping bass and a soaring synth line, “Doesn’t Matter” is carried by a chiming, morning-crisp guitar riff that lilts with just a hint of melancholy. Contrasting lead singer Rory Trobbiani’s far away yet impassioned vocal delivery with a rich vein of melodicism, it proves slyly, almost impossibly infectious beneath shifting layers of fog and shadow.
Directed by Henry Gosper and self-produced by the band, the accompanying “Doesn’t Matter” video provides yet another surreal, distorted glimpse into HighSchool’s aesthetic universe. They share that “The video was shot over two days at three separate locations in and around the outskirts of Melbourne. We were trying to capture a modern Southern Gothic atmosphere with an Australian flair, taking inspiration from classic Australian Gothic literature and film as well as crime stoppers adverts and the T.V. programs like Highway Patrol.”
The announcement of their second EP comes right as the band prepare to kick off their headline Australian tour. Following that, they will then jet off for a headline tour of Japan, followed by their appearance at SXSW in Austin, TX, further USA tours supporting Provoker and zzzahara, and ending with a headline tour to mark their return to the UK/ Europe.
UPCOMING HIGHSCHOOL TOUR DATES (US)
March 10 | Drkmttr – Nashville, TN *
March 14 | Sounds Australia [SXSW] – Austin, TX
March 15 | Clash Magazine Showcase [SXSW] – Austin, TX
March 16 | White Oak – Houston, TX *
March 19 | Rebel Lounge – Phoenix, AZ *
March 20 | Eagle Aerie Hall – Las Vegas, NV *
March 21 | Constellation Room – Santa Ana, CA *
March 22 | Teragram Ballroom – Los Angeles, CA *
March 24 | Barboza – Seattle, WA +
March 25 | The Spanish Ballroom – Tacoma, WA +
March 27 | Polaris Hall – Portland, OR +
March 29 | The Atrium – Santa Cruz, CA +
March 30 | Harlow’s – Sacramento, CA +
April 1 | The Independent – San Francisco, CA +
* Supporting Provoker
+ Supporting zzzahara
Made up of Rory Trobbiani and Luke Scott, HighSchool create intoxicating music, whose debut 2021 EP Forever At Last is a lo-fi gem of the genre. Championed by the likes of NME, The FADER, CLASH, DIY, PAPER, Rolling Stone AU, The Line of Best Fit, So Young and more, the band recently announced their signing to [PIAS] alongside the release of their latest single “August 19”.
After relocating to London, HighSchool have joined the likes of Wet Leg, CHVRCHES, NewDad and Mandy, Indiana on tour before playing a summer of UK festivals including All Points East, End of the Road, The Great Escape, Manchester Pysch Festival, Sea Change, Standon Calling and Visions. The autumn brought their first headline shows, both in the UK and across Europe, promoting not only their EP but also their anthemic track “Only a Dream”, released as a limited 7” on Dan Carey’s ever-great Speedy Wunderground label.
With Rory’s sister Lilli Trobbiani staying back to complete her studies, they returned to London to start work on their second EP, basing themselves out of a practice space in Peckham. Ahead of their first-ever headline tour and to start a summer tun of festivals, they released “Colt”, their most dancefloor-friendly track yet that had brilliant splas of electro and Italo-disco added to their new wave mix. It also had a great accompanying video, shot in Rome with a vainglorious Rory mingling among the sights and bemused tourists.
Known for directing their own incredible videos, they continue the escapism theme of previous single “Colt” with a clip shot in Benidorm, the popular Spanish tourist destination known for its sandy beaches and trashy nightlife. They follow a fish-out-of-water protagonist while he gets ready to go out on the bustling neon-lit streets, showing the disparity between expectation and reality – a concept that runs throughout their upcoming Accelerator EP.