Laura Jane Grace Surprise Releases ‘Stay Alive’ Solo Album

Laura Jane Grace surprise-released a new album called Stay Alive on Thursday (Oct. 1) via Polyvinyl Records. It's the Against Me frontwoman's second solo effort but first under her name alone after 2018's Brought to Rot, issued under the moniker Laura Jane Grace and the Devouring Mothers.

According to the musician, the 14 songs on Stay Alive had been in the works for some time. Yet it was the impact of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and its effects on the music industry that moved the singer-songwriter to drop the album unannounced rather than let the tunes go to waste.

Listen to the complete album down toward the bottom of this post.

"I sat around for a month-and-a-half at home just being shellshocked being like, 'What the fuck happened and what the fuck is happening with the world?'" Grace said. "As I started to get my bearings, I just came to the realization that waiting was going to kill the record and kill the songs. I spent two years working on all these songs, and the idea of throwing them away didn't sit well with me."

She continued, "But then I was like, 'What am I waiting for?' All I have to do is adjust my scope. I can sit here on my fucking ass and do nothing, or I can work. … I just want to put this out because it makes me feel alive and it's giving me something better than sitting here losing my mind while the world falls apart."

Stay Alive was recorded by famed producer Steve Albini (Nirvana, Pixies, Bush) at his Electrical Audio in Grace's adopted hometown of Chicago. In true Albini fashion, the effort was captured direct to analog tape in a mere four days. As for the subject matter therein, the singer summed it up in terms of confident survival.

"It doesn't matter what anyone else thinks about what you do," Grace added. "Just stay alive."

Physical editions of Stay Alive are available to pre-order now alongside exclusive new Laura Jane Grace merch.

Laura Jane Grace, Stay Alive Track Listing

1. "The Swimming Pool Song"
2. "The Calendar Song"
3. "Shelter in Place"
4. "Return to Oz"
5. "The Mountain Song"
6. "SuperNatural Possession"
7. "Hanging Tree"
8. "Please Leave"
9. "Why Kant I Be You?"
10. "Ice Cream Song"
11. "The Magic Point"
12. "Blood and Thunder"
13. "So Long, Farewell, Auf Wiedersehen, Fuck Off"
14. "Old Friend (Stay Alive)"