Benzene by French Cassettes

The album title for French Cassettes’ new album Benzene—an abstraction of frontman Lorzeno Scott Huerta’s family nickname—was chosen on a whim. “I wish I had a better explanation,” he admits. “I guess I should have Googled it first.”

The self-deprecation is classic Benz, as is this crossing of the wires between the flippant and the deeply meaningful. It’s one reason the San Francisco band’s third album holds up so well to repeated listens. Even when influences like The Magnetic Fields and The Beach Boys peek through, Huerta’s lyrical aesthetic is his own: the San Francisco band’s new album is packed to the gills with funny, memorable one-liners that take a twist for the heartbreaking. “My mother’s mother talks in comic sans,” he sings. “I will never not love her. I wish there were more emails to read.”

Benzene, recorded with Cassettes’ cofounder Mackenzie Bunch (they started the band together in High School back in Ripon, California) and drummer Rob Mills bears evidence of a band more comfortable with both taking risks and taking it easy. “When You Know You Know” finds a soulful groove that continues into lilting quasi-Americana of “Megabus.” But the band never stands still for long: “Normal Day,” with its breakbeat-style drums and woozy Mellotron, is the band at its most carnivalesque. “White Noise” is a testament to Bunch’s knack for adventurous production, all warbling and dueling guitars and brutally oversaturated drums.

About the Vinyl: 12" cloudy clear transparent vinyl in a gatefold jacket and printed inner sleeve

Tracklist

1.	Fast Held Hand	3:36

2.	Eyes Glazed Over	2:59

3.	Medium Horny	2:55

4.	Baseball Bat	3:42

5.	White Noise	2:21

6.	When You Know, You Know	2:19

7.	Megabus	3:25

8.	Normal Day	3:30

9.	Finally	3:05

10.	Up2You	3:15

Credits

released June 7, 2024

All songs recorded by Mackenzie Bunch, Scott Huerta, and Rob Mills at Big Mac Studio in Oakland, CA, Bathmaster Studio in Burbank, CA, and the band’s apartments in San Francisco.

All songs mixed by Nick Krill and mastered by João Carvalho

All songs written by Scott Huerta with the exception of “Baseball Bat” written by Mackenzie Bunch and Scott Huerta.

Album muni art by Paula Duarte @sfcitygrl

Layout design by Ava Reeves

Gatefold photo by Marisa Bazan, and lyrics page photos by Andrew St. James, Marisa Bazan, Zoey Marciniak

Thank you so much to the whole team at our label Tender Loving Empire, Andrew St. James for his unwavering commitment and musical contributions to our live set and the band as a whole, and to everyone who listens to our records, makes it to shows, and just generally supports the band. Truly means a lot.

Scott Huerta — Vocals, Guitar

Mackenzie Bunch — Guitar, Bass, Keyboards

Rob Mills — Drums, Percussion

Benjamin Adams — Bass and Backing Vocals on “Normal Day”

Andrew Stephens — Trumpet on “Baseball Bat”

Nico Peña — Electric Guitar on “Fast Held Hand”

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