Helen Return with First Album in 11 Years, ‘Linda’s Head’

The shoegaze trio featuring Liz Harris of Grouper has announced its second LP, out October 2 via Kranky, with two new songs available now.

After an eleven-year gap, Helen have returned. The shoegaze trio—Liz Harris of Grouper, bassist Scott Simmons, and drummer Jed Bindeman—will release Linda’s Head on October 2 through Kranky. It is the band’s second studio album, following 2015’s The Original Faces.

Two songs from the record are streaming now: the title track and “Dead Shark II.” The tracks resume the band’s practice of burying melody inside dense, distortion-rich arrangements, a clear departure from Harris’s solo work under the Grouper name.

Harris will also play six solo shows in September, with dates in Chicago, Toronto, Montreal, New York City, Washington, D.C., and Kingston, New York. Her most recent Grouper album was 2021’s Shade.

The ten-song tracklist for Linda’s Head runs from opener “Faraway” to closer “Canyon.” The cover image, credited to Harris, mirrors the album’s unadorned mood.