Knuckle tattoos are popular because, most of the time, fists are necessary to read them. Think about Radio Raheem’s rings in Do The Right Thing (not tattoos, but same dif): the eight-letter message comes part-and-parcel with punching. Getting something inked on your skin already lends it some significance, but when the message is shared with that of fighting, it hits that much harder (sorry, I had to).
The fact that Thin Lips frontwoman Chrissy Tashjian has “RIFF HARD” tattooed on her knuckles, then — and that the credo also adorns her band’s debut LP — shouldn’t be overlooked, lest you risk a black eye from the band's emotional impact. Case in point is “My Mouth Is Skinned Like an Apple,” with lines like it’s easy living when you don’t have to stare into the lies that you’ve made. In an email to The FADER, Tashjian had this to say about the track's official video, premiering above:
"So much of my music is about being a queer and so I just kind of wanted to show a day in my life. I met with Adam and just showed him all of the little things I collect, my altar, and some of my most special friends (some couldn't make it obviously). [The video is] just basically a day of what is important to me and what impacts and influences me most."
Riff Hard is out now via Lame-O. They're also in the throws of a big tour with Modern Baseball and Joyce Manor; those dates are below.
Tour dates:
06/21 - Pontiac, MI - Crofoot Ballroom*
06/22 - Pittsburgh, PA - Altar Bar*
06/23 - Boston, MA - House Of Blues*
06/24 - New York, NY - Irving Plaza*
06/25 - New York, NY - Irving Plaza*
06/26 - Philadelphia, PA - The Fillmore*
06/28 - Baltimore, MD - Baltimore Sound Stage*
06/29 - Richmond, VA - Broadberry*
06/30 - Carrboro, NC - Cat's Cradle*
07/01 - Orlando, FL - The Beacham*
07/02 - Ft. Lauderdale, FL - Revolution*
07/03 - Tampa, FL - The Orpheum*
* w/ Modern Baseball, Joyce Manor