You may have seen Brooklyn art rock duo Sex Week – comprised of partners Richard Orofino and Pearl Amanda Dickson – open The Foundry for chloe moriondo last May. They’ve also played PhilaMOCA with our buddies Golden Apples. Last week the band – who are signed to Grand Jury, home of our phriends Jordana, Samia, and Crooks & Nannies — opened three nights at The Shed in New York City for Mitski, and they’re currently on a short run supporting Australian dream pop trio Acopia, which will have them at our very own Warehouse on Watts this Saturday, March 14th.
Sex Week are currently touring behind sophomore EP Upper Mezzanine, which dropped last August and Stereogum called, “Dark, viscous, and unhurried.” The “unhurried” characterization likely refers to the fact that the group’s 2024 self-titled EP; despite garnering praise from outlets like PAPER, NYLON, and Consequence and earning them support duties on the aforementioned chloe moriondo tour; actually came together at a rapid-fire pace, as Dickson was just delving into songwriting herself and finding her musical connection with Orofino, who has been making and producing music since grade school.
The band themselves have said that their recent EP’s title “represents a level that doesn’t really exist. Somewhere in between,” noting it as an analogy for the current state of their musical partnership: “You’re grateful to not be in the nosebleeds, but you’re also not in the orchestra seating. We’re still discovering our identity with every song we make, and so this batch of songs helped shape us and hopefully potential future songs.” I recently got a chance to chat with Richard and Pearl about some of the early highlights of Sex Week and what can be expected from the duo, both this Saturday night and beyond.
Izzy Cihak: Since this is a Philadelphia publication, I have to ask if you have any thoughts or memories of the city? You’ve played here a few times now.
Sex Week: Our favorite memory of Philadelphia is when we were waiting for our show at PhilaMOCA to start and were eating a bunch of salami and crackers on the sidewalk when we got serenaded by a guy with his guitar. He just straight up sang at us for ten or so minutes. It was awesome. Pearl said we were blessed by a Philly music god.
Izzy Cihak: I understand that the concept behind your second EP, Upper Mezzanine, was “How do we do what we just did but better?” Considering that the EP has been out for just over six months now, how you think that’s panned out? Do you feel like it’s lived up to the bar you set?
Sex Week: Yes, we think so. Yay!
Izzy Cihak: Have you had any favorite reactions to the songs?
Sex Week: We had a lot of great things said about the music and it’s been so fun to hear people try to categorize the songs.
Izzy Cihak: You’re currently playing live in support of the EP, including three shows opening for Mitski in New York (which must just feel insanely cool and insanely validating), and this short tour supporting Acopia. How excited are you about these shows?
Sex Week: Very excited. Opening for Mitski did not feel real until we stepped foot in The Shed. Acopia is so sick and we are just feeling so excited to properly tour Upper Mezzanine.
Izzy Cihak: What can be expected of the Sex Week live show on these dates, in terms of setlist, production, and just the general vibes? I’ll definitely be at the Warehouse on Watts show… which is actually right across the street from the opera house where Mitski played the last time she was here.
Sex Week: We definitely try to make the setlists feel specific for different shows. For the Mitski shows we definitely went a bit more theatrical in terms of movement and production. More keys and some drums. Maya Allaire made Pearl three individual catsuits for each show. Acopia dates will be a great for us to focus on Upper Mezzanine and test some other new stuff as well.
Izzy Cihak: I know that you also handle all of the visual elements of your work, and you’ve put out a number of really cool music videos for tracks from the EP. What kinds of things have been influencing the visual elements of Sex Week recently?
Sex Week: There were a lot of different worlds going on. The opera house, Long Island, Las Vegas, and Idaho. We wanted them to somehow all feel connected.
Izzy Cihak: I just saw that you’ve actually done videos for Babehoven and Palehound, who are some of my favorite people in music. Are there any artists that you dream of being able to make music videos for… whether entirely realistic or not?
Sex Week: Addison Rae, Industry Standard, Franke, Kevin Tierney, The Cure.
Izzy Cihak: You’ve been with Grand Jury for a number of years now, which is such a cool label! How has it been working with them for the better part of your career?
Sex Week: Grand Jury have been great. They really give us a lot of freedom and trust to do what we want as artists.
Izzy Cihak: Your currently announced dates wrap just before the vernal equinox, or spring equinox. How are you hoping and planning to spend your spring? Actually, do you have thoughts or feelings about springtime in general?
Sex Week: Yes. Spring is great. We love a BBQ. The spring is powerful, it brings growth and change. We are so excited for April Fool’s Day.
Izzy Cihak: And I heard that there are rumblings of international festivals in the near future, and I know you’ve played some in the past, like last year’s All Points East (which had a totally amazing lineup). How do you like playing these massive open-air festivals with huge bills, compared to your usual shows in nightclubs?
Sex Week: We really get different things out of different types of shows. Hopefully we will play some more international ones. After playing with Acopia, we would love to go to Australia.
*Get your tickets here.
