Runnner (Los Angeles-based songwriter/producer/multi-instrumentalist Noah Weinman) recently announced his sophomore full-length, A Welcome Kind of Weakness, and today he’s back with another new single, “Get Real Sleep.”
Due out August 29th from Run For Cover Records/Civilians, A Welcome Kind of Weakness forgoes the home-recorded crackle of Runnner’s previous work for a widescreen sound reminiscent of the early 2000s indie rock boom. Weinman has already released a mad dash of striking new singles including “Achilles And,” “Coinstar,” “Spackle,” “Chamomile,” and “Untitled October Song“ (which have drawn attention from the likes of Stereogum, BrooklynVegan, Paste Magazine, and more), now “Get Real Sleep” offers another dose of hifi bombast that elevates his intimate songwriting.
Weinman discussed the new song saying: “I first started writing this song years ago, I was thinking a lot about ‘real sleep.’ We say it all the time and it’s funny to me that there’s this concept of actual sleep vs bad sleep. Sonically I wanted it to be sort of hypnotic but also a bit frantic. Like the push/pull of actively trying to sleep.”
‘A Welcome Kind of Weakness’ emerged from a simultaneous tear in Weinman’s body and life. Written during months of bedrest and recovery from a torn achilles tendon, compounded by the drastic upheaval of a breakup, the album feels defined by change and fittingly, Runnner’s sound has undergone a drastic sonic shift to accompany it.
In the summer of 2022 Weinman found himself overwhelmed with change. He was going through a breakup—moving house and reeling, but also preparing to release his acclaimed debut record, like dying stars, we’re reaching out, with a lengthy schedule of touring ahead. This turning point was the culmination of five years spent working in the Los Angeles music scene, and building a name for the Runnner project, as well as for himself as a producer (for Skullcrusher, Gigi Perez, Odie Leigh, Horsepower, and more) and contributor to countless bands. Then in the spring of 2023, on a break between tours, Weinman was playing basketball with a group of friends and heard his Achilles tendon pop.
Surgery and strict bedrest followed. Stuck in bed, tour cancelled, confined by the unpredictable forces that had thwarted his momentum, something else broke in Weinman, too. Whatever had been protecting him from the pain of heartbreak couldn’t withstand the present’s inertia. It seemed he’d finally have to feel it after all. The result is ‘A Welcome Kind of Weakness‘: Runnner’s first studio-recorded album, a propulsive, high fidelity document of trying to move past physical and emotional pain to come out the other side stronger and bolder than ever.
Get Real Sleep is available and streaming everywhere now, ‘A Welcome Kind of Weakness’ will be available Friday August 29 via Run For Cover Records/Civilians.
