Black Dresses

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Black Dresses
OriginToronto, Canada[1]
GenresNoise pop, electro-industrial
Years active2017–2020
Past membersAda Rook
Devi McCallion

Black Dresses were a Canadian noise pop duo consisting of Ada Rook and Devi McCallion.[2][3] Their debut album, Wasteisolation, was released independently in 2018. The duo released three albums, Thank You (2019), Love and Affection for Stupid Little Bitches (2019), and Peaceful As Hell (2020), before breaking up in 2020. Despite no longer being a band, Black Dresses released their fifth studio album, Forever in Your Heart, in 2021.

History[]

2018-2019: Wasteisolation, Thank You, and Love and Affection for Stupid Little Bitches[]

Black Dresses was formed in 2017 by self-taught musicians Ada Rook and Devi McCallion after Rook sent McCallion a beat on Twitter.[4] They released their first single, a cover of M.I.A.'s "Paper Planes", in December 2017.[5]

The duo released their debut album, Wasteisolation, in April 2018.[6] The album was created entirely through online collaboration, with McCallion based in Toronto and Rook in Vancouver.[7] Wasteisolation received positive coverage by Noisey,[8] Stereogum[9] and The Fader who called it "a raw, abrasive, and deliriously catchy album about surviving as trans women in an antagonistic world."[7] This was followed shortly by the EP Hell Is Real, released in October of the same year.[10] The EP featured in Stereogum's end of the year EP list,[11] with the duo also featuring in the publication's best new artists list.[12]

In February 2019, Black Dresses released their second studio album, Thank You.[13] In May, they released Dreams Come True 2019, a remix EP consisting of new versions of several Wasteisolation tracks.[14] The band released their third studio album, Love and Affection for Stupid Little Bitches in August 2019.[15] The album was reviewed positively, with Pitchfork's Colin Joyce awarding an album a rating of 7.7,[3] and Noisey including the record on its "22 Best Albums You May Have Missed in 2019" list.[16]

2020-present: Peaceful as Hell, breakup, and Forever In Your Heart[]

In March 2020, a full length animated video for the Wasteisolation track NAUSEA was released. On 13 April 2020, the second anniversary of Wasteisolation's release, Black Dresses released their fourth LP, Peaceful as Hell.[17] The album received a rating of 7.6 from Pitchfork, with Leah Mandel stating, "Especially with the world's hellishness currently blaring at us, every social disparity spotlighted and exacerbated, loneliness and doubt deepened to an extreme degree, Peaceful as Hell is perfect medicine".[2]

The duo announced via Twitter on May 26, 2020 that Black Dresses would be disbanding, citing the harassment received by McCallion as the reason.[18] The band's music was also temporarily taken off streaming services.[19] On 10 July 2020, after the duo disbanded, a remix of 100 Gecs song, "745 Sticky", was released on the remix album 1000 Gecs and the Tree of Clues. On 21 December 2020, the duo released a single with ESPer99 titled "World Peace", recorded in 2019.[20] McCallion and Rook also released solo music under the names Girls Rituals and Ada Rook respectively.[7]

On February 14, 2021, the duo released their fifth studio album, Forever in Your Heart, announcing it 30 minutes prior to its release. Despite the release, the group stated "We're no longer a band unfortunately. Regardless, we've decided to keep putting out music."[21] Ten days later, Backxwash announced the tracklist for her album I Lie Here Buried with My Rings and My Dresses, which will feature Rook and McCallion on separate tracks.[22] In August 2021, Black Dresses' music returned to streaming services.[23]

Discography[]

Albums[]

EPs[]

  • Lethal Poison for the System (2017) (with 99jakes and Laura Les)[5]
  • Hell Is Real (2018)[10]
  • Dreams Come True 2019 (2019)[14]

References[]

  1. ^ Zetko, Teodor (18 March 2019). "Souls are as frigid as their music: Toronto's newest noise-pop duo Black Dresses". CFMU-FM. Retrieved 28 April 2020.
  2. ^ Jump up to: a b c Mandel, Leah (24 April 2020). "Black Dresses: Peaceful As Hell". Pitchfork. Retrieved 28 April 2020.
  3. ^ Jump up to: a b c Joyce, Colin (31 August 2019). "Black Dresses: Love And Affection For Stupid Little Bitches". Pitchfork. Retrieved 28 April 2020.
  4. ^ Mertens, Max (16 January 2019). "The sound of Toronto right now". NOW Toronto. Retrieved 28 April 2020.
  5. ^ Jump up to: a b "LETHAL POISON FOR THE SYSTEM". 21 December 2017. Retrieved 9 April 2021.
  6. ^ Jump up to: a b Rettig, James (13 April 2018). "Stream Black Dresses WASTEISOLATION". Stereogum. Retrieved 28 April 2020.
  7. ^ Jump up to: a b c Geffen, Sasha (1 June 2018). "The addictive power of Black Dresses's dark, delirious noise pop". The Fader. Retrieved 28 April 2020.
  8. ^ Joyce, Colin (20 July 2018). "40 Essential Albums You Probably Missed So Far in 2018". Noisey. Retrieved 28 April 2020.
  9. ^ Rettig, James (6 June 2018). "The 50 Best Albums Of 2018 So Far". Stereogum. Retrieved 28 April 2020.
  10. ^ Jump up to: a b Rettig, James (15 October 2018). "Stream Black Dresses' New HELL IS REAL EP". Stereogum. Retrieved 28 April 2020.
  11. ^ Rettig, James (5 December 2018). "25 Great EPs From 2018". Stereogum. Retrieved 28 April 2020.
  12. ^ Tully Claymore, Gabriela (29 October 2018). "Stereogum's 40 Best New Bands Of 2018". Stereogum. Retrieved 28 April 2020.
  13. ^ Jump up to: a b Rettig, James (5 February 2019). "Stream Black Dresses' New Album THANK YOU". Stereogum. Retrieved 28 April 2020.
  14. ^ Jump up to: a b "DREAMS COME TRUE 2019". Bandcamp.
  15. ^ Rettig, James (1 August 2019). "Stream Black Dresses' New Album LOVE AND AFFECTION FOR STUPID LITTLE BITCHES". Stereogum. Retrieved 28 April 2020.
  16. ^ Joyce, Colin (24 December 2019). "The 22 Best Albums You May Have Missed in 2019". Noisey. Retrieved 28 April 2020.
  17. ^ Rettig, James (13 April 2020). "Stream Black Dresses' New Album Peaceful As Hell". Stereogum. Retrieved 28 April 2020.
  18. ^ @BlackDresses666 (26 May 2020). "Announcement" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  19. ^ Hatfield, Amanda (26 May 2020). "Black Dresses "will no longer exist," following alleged TikTok drama; music taken off streaming services". BrooklynVegan. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
  20. ^ Gregory, Alice (21 December 2020). "Black Dresses Return with New Single "World Peace"". Exclaim!. Retrieved 21 December 2020.
  21. ^ Jump up to: a b Breihan, Tom (15 February 2021). "Black Dresses Are Still Broken Up, But They Just Released A New Album Anyway". Stereogum. Retrieved 16 February 2021./>
  22. ^ Bobkin, Matt (24 February 2021). "Backxwash Gets clipping., Black Dresses, Sad13 for Upcoming Album". Exclaim!. Retrieved 3 March 2021.
  23. ^ "music back on streaming". Twitter. 8 August 2021. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
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