Upcoming Releases

Kansas City native Matt Pryor (The Get Up Kids) announced his new solo album The Salton Sea will be released on November 14th, 2025, via Nightshoes Syndicate. The self-produced, 10-track LP, featuring mixing and additional production by Peter Katis (The National, Interpol), sees Pryor explore an expansive, full-band sound reminiscent of The Afghan Whigs and Bob Mould’s Sugar–specifically the band’s 1992 LP Copper Blue–with dreamy guitars, big drums, and shimmering production. The album’s lead single and title-track, a yearning anthem, is the perfect entry point and is out now alongside a video directed by Josh Berwanger (The Anniversary). “Three years ago I was in the darkest place of my life and this song really reflects that time. I was lost, alone, and felt forgotten–I just wanted to disappear,” Pryor explains. “I started writing stories about that time in my life, and those stories became songs, and those songs became The Salton Sea."

It should be noted that the chosen title for his seventh album is not one that was picked arbitrarily. After spending six months in a downward spiral in what he sarcastically refers to as the penultimate moments of his “drinking career,” Pryor finally hit rock bottom. A casual habit that became a full-on addiction had officially come to a head, and in the blurry moments when 2022 became 2023, Pryor found himself with a choice that so many people before him have been forced to reckon with: Keep going on this path and face certain tragedy, or, clean up, get sober, and stay on the right side of the dirt.

Thankfully, Pryor decided on the latter, and the beautiful composite left on the shoreline for all of us to enjoy is the album now known as The Salton Sea. For those unfamiliar, The Salton Sea in Southern California is what’s known as a “terminal” lake–meaning that new water never flows into it, and its salinity increases incrementally due to evaporation and pollution. The once high-spirited desert oasis–a tourist attraction for celebrities and the upper crust in the 1950s and 60s–is now a bona fide wasteland. It’s not difficult to imagine that, while in the throes of addiction, Pryor felt exactly like this: a shadow of his younger self.

“The story that these songs tell is about that time in my life,” notes Pryor. “Autumn rolling into spring because the winter was a blackout. How the good times were great until one day they weren’t. How I lost myself and hurt people that I care about. How I got help that didn’t stick and how I lost faith in the help that did. That I came out on the other side of the whole ordeal only to realize I am still a work in progress, that we all are.”

The songs of The Salton Sea are timeless and captivating, like hearing a stranger share their journey through hell and back. As a listener, you’re left wondering what these moments are all about–how will they unfold? This is undoubtedly due to the fact that along with sobriety, Pryor found solace in writing for the sake of writing, a practice that he keeps up with daily–usually before dawn. If there’s a silver lining to all of this, one can glean the life-saving grace of having creative outlets to calm the devil that sits on your shoulder.

The Salton Sea tracklist:

1. The Salton Sea
2. Barrymores
3. The Imperfectionist
4. Union Transfer
5. The Dishonesty
6. Harden Your Heart
7. Maria
8. I Don't Pray
9. Darken My Door
10. Doubt