Boy Anonymous was a defining moment for Paris Texas in 2021 — etching their name as unruly alt-rap phenoms for years to come.
Experimentally unbound and captivating at their core, the Los Angeles-based duo are at the precipice of sonic peace with the release of their debut album, MID-AIR, on Friday (July 21). Sharing four singles in the lead-up the record, “PANIC!!!”, “BULLET MAN,” “Everybody’s Safe Until…” and their latest “DnD” with Kenny Mason, MID-AIR is truly poised to lift Paris Texas to new heights — if it already hasn’t.
Featuring 16 tracks and features from Mason and Teezo Touchdown, who appears on “Full English,” their debut album is an amalgamation of their thoughts, feelings and fears surrounding a state of “pseudo-fame.” “Y’all really catapulted us into the most surreal position imaginable,” the group wrote on Twitter. “We ain’t even know if we was gonna keep going up or fall on our f**king faces. [We’ve] just been in this weird purgatorial state. We had to keep it pushing, for real, not even knowing what was next.”
“We’ve never been this excited to show y’all a piece of work in our lives. Like two years ago, we dropped some shit and y’all really catapulted us into the most surreal position imaginable. And that’s kind of what this album’s about. We kind of got shot into this pseudo-fame, And n**a like, we ain’t even know if we was gonna keep going up or fall on our fcking faces, just been in this weird purgatorial state. We had to keep it pushing for real not even knowing what was next… working through breakups and deaths and weird friends, all that cliches biopic shit. But trust me say this shit fire for real. like we hit that muthaf*ckin’ ramp and we doing McTwists on this album. I put that on my dead granny, rest in peace. Like after this album i’m throwing all that humble shit out the window… lol kidding. forever humble forever grateful especially for you guys and my team for real. damn what else do i say…. idk but love yall.”
Paris Texas via Twitter
Each of the four singles showcase Paris Texas’ robust display of genre-bending, which is most prevalent on the Kenny Mason-assisted “DnD.” Known to both incorporate heavy grunge guitars in their work, the ATL-LA link-up is made more connective through stories of fighting through pain in all facets — finding power in the pitfalls of struggle. Letting their intrusive thoughts win, the pair contemplate their insignificance — rehashing feelings of “pseudo-fame” — over bombastic percussion and rather hazy melodies that complement VHS B-roll on each of the prior singles. “BULLET MAN” is a punch to the throat during a Fight Club session, where “PANIC!!!” acts as like inescapable pit that “Everybody’s Safe Until…” offers a safe haven for.
Felix and Louie (aka Paris Texas) recently sat down with Pigeons & Planes to discuss their debut record, describing the expansive narratives that are inherently “shrouded in tragedy,” as P&P puts it, that all depend on “perspective.” Whether you’re on the way up or on the way down, MID-AIR feels like a fleeting moment of indecision airborne, as Paris Texas thrives being the “outcasts” and “underdogs” they’ve been labeled as. This, though, is their secret sauce; All you have to do is take the leap with them.
Listen to ‘MID-AIR’ below!
