In early 2021, Joanna and Ben Teters, the brother and sister who front SunDub, were shaken to their core by the death of their younger brother, Adam. He was only 20 and was a budding musician and producer, just like most everyone in the family; he had already been working on projects with his older siblings. As you would expect with two musicians, Ben and Joanna used their artistry as a tool to help make sense of their new reality. The most direct result is the powerful title track from their upcoming sophomore album, Spirits Eat Music, which is being released as a single via Easy Star Records. (The full album comes out November 11, 2022.) Though the song and its lyrics were written prior to Adam’s passing, both took on powerful new meaning in the wake of that tragic event.

Ben says, “’Spirits Eat Music’ – the song – is a reminder that we will always be connected to our loved ones who are not with us anymore. We can be aware of, and foster, that connection if we so choose, and music is one of the best tools we have to help us do this.” This single follows the release of first single “Jump and Dance,” featuring Lutan Fyah, which was much more straight fun thematically. (And which has been getting a lot of good attention, including a spin by the dean of British reggae, David Rodigan, who played it on his weekly BBC1 show.) All this is not to say that “Spirits Eat Music” is some heavy, down tune – on the contrary, it takes these metaphysical matters and imbues them into a hook-laden riddim that makes it easy to connect with. Speaking further on it, Ben says, “Music can nourish the souls of those who are no longer here with us on Earth. Much like prayer, music can help us communicate with, and gain a deeper connection to, spirits and ourselves. Its meaning evolves with each new listener, its message unifies us all in the fact that we will all one day be spirits eating music together, after this life.” This spiritual theme found on the whole album combines with different modes on the record – from the romantic to the political to the hedonistic – to provide a catchy and complex statement of the moment from this young band, which rewards with repeat listens of the entire sequence.