Mac McCaughan – “Burn A Fax”Mac McCaughan – “Burn A Fax”

Superchunk frontman and Merge Records co-founder Mac McCaughan is releasing his second solo album, The Sound Of Yourself, later this month. Lead single “Dawn Bends” featured Yo La Tengo and Jon Wurster, and “Circling Around” featured Telekinesis’ Michael Benjamin Lerner. “I’m constantly inspired by the work of my peers,” McCaughan says. “I feel lucky to be able to collaborate with them despite the distances between us. Sending off a song into the ether and having it returned greatly improved and in often surprising and moving ways was one of the most satisfying aspects of making this record.”

Final single “Burn A Fax,” out today, features Torres’ Mackenzie Scott and the Mountain Goats’ Matt Douglas. “The opening line was inspired by a Brian Eno quote from a BBC doc where they’re playing him Roxy Music and he’s putting his hands over his ears going, ‘I can’t bear remembering’ or something,” McCaughan explains. “It’s not that he hates it, it’s just that ‘it’s all in the past.’ I think a lot about the power of nostalgia and fighting it at the same time… Mackenzie Scott sings the second verse and Matt Douglas of the Mountain Goats destroys on the sax. He sent three tracks ‘to choose from,’ but of course I had to use them all!” Listen below.

The Sound Of Yourself is out 9/24 on Merge. Pre-order it here.