This Tuesday Chicago post-country quartet Ratboys released “Penny in the Lake,” the fifth and final single ahead of their sixth studio album, Singin’ to an Empty Chair, which drops today courtesy of the band’s new home, New West Records (also home to PHILTHY phriends Emily Nenni, Esther Rose, Jaime Wyatt, Lilly Hiatt, and SUSTO.) The track is a summertime jam that, according to the band’s latest press release, frontwoman Julia Steiner penned in her backyard.
“I wrote this song on a sunny summer day while sitting outside in my backyard, and then we recorded the album version up at the Driftless Cabin in Wisconsin, about as close to nature as we could get… We wanted everything to feel live and loose, and we chose to leave the final recording as unadorned as possible. Chris [Walla] dubbed this approach ‘photographic realism,’ and I love to think of the song that way, as a snapshot of our band in a room playing a song together, living in the moment and having a great time.”
Singin’ to an Empty Chair is the second Ratboys LP to be co-produced by former Death Cab For Cutie guitarist and producer extraordinaire Chris Walla, following The Window, the band’s fifth and final for Top Shelf Records. The last time I spoke with Julia Steiner was August of 2023, just before The Window dropped, but we have seen Ratboys play a number of memorable shows in and around the City of Brotherly Love and Sisterly Affection since then…
2023 saw Ratboys headlining Johnny Brenda’s; 2024 had them opening The Fillmore for The Decemberists just prior to a NON-COMM set, followed by a November show double-headlining Underground Arts with Palehound, which featured local premieres of two Singin’ to an Empty Chair tracks; and 2025 brought them to Glenside to open for Kim Deal… which featured local premieres of an additional two Singin’ to an Empty Chair tracks
Following a surprise hometown record release day show at Chicago’s Beat Kitchen tonight (with 100% of the proceeds benefitting the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights and Albany Park Mutual Aid), Ratboys will kick off nearly two months of North American dates on February 25th in Detroit, which includes a March 3rd show at First Unitarian Church featuring Philly’s own Florry, who are opening the first two-and-a-half weeks of the tour.
At the moment, Ratboys’ March 3rd stop at The Church is sold out, but we would highly recommend signing up for the waiting list. We would also recommend getting your own copy of Singin’ to an Empty Chair, checking out the recent music videos for “Penny in the Lake” and “Anywhere,” and reading my 2023 chat with Julia Steiner, who tells me all about Ratboys’ serious love of touring, Chris Walla, and Philadelphia.
