In bittersweet news, the fourth album from the late Mike Noga now has a confirmed release date. Its first single, ‘Open Fire’, is out now.
The album, Open Fire, will come out on Friday, 8th October through Part Time Records. Noga wrote the album in his home town of Hobart and recorded it in August 2019 at Sacred Heart Studios in Duluth, Minnesota. Alan Sparhawk of indie-slowcore faves Low produced the record. Noga toured Europe, Australia and New Zealand with Low in 2016, during which time he became friends with Sparhawk.
“Mike had all these songs figured out; how he wanted them to sound and what needed to be done to achieve that so, once he’d arrived in Duluth work went fast,” said Sparhawk. “He put in long hours, pushed through doubt, worked out glitches and found the transcendence he so desperately hungered for, all the while sharing and inviting us into the journey.”
Noga passed away on 26th August 2020. A statement from the label notes that Noga’s death was accidental and attributed to a rare condition that caused a cerebral haemorrhage, a condition exacerbated by bouts of heavy drinking.
“Mike had a lifelong struggle with anxiety and depression, which became particularly difficult in the last three years of his life. His family are incredibly proud of this album, for its ambition, beauty and nuance. His passing has left his family and friends with a massive void that might be partly filled with his incredible body of music. A gift to us all.”
Noga was previously a member of The Drones, playing drums on the albums Gala Mill (2006), Havilah (2008) and I See Seaweed (2013). Open Fire follows Noga’s excellent 2016 release, KING, produced by Paul Dempsey (Something For Kate).
