“Cerulean R is the expanded 15th anniversary reissue of my first Baths record, Cerulean. The “R” in the title refers to the tagline “Reissue, Remix, Resurface, Remaster”.

The Release itself is split into 3 constituent parts:

“Reissue” LP1 is a reissue of the original record.

“Remix” LP2 contains 8 unheard remixes created in 2010-2011, around the original release. “Resurface” LP3 contains 8 unsung Baths songs from the same Cerulean era, including unheard demos, all of which have never had any sort of Physical release.

The entirety of the Cerulean R release is beautifully remastered by the same engineer who mastered the original record 15 years ago, Daddy Kev.

The most unique aspect of Cerulean R is that all of this music is from the precise 2009-2011 era that it was created, with no recent intervention besides the mastering process. It’s all part of the sort of pocket universe that existed around its release— a true time capsule. It’s a magical thing to be able to include so much material that has waited an entire 15 years to be heard for the first time.

Cerulean launched my career and gave me a footing in music that I’d only ever dreamed possible, and Iowe so much of my continued success to the relationship that people have with this record. I’m proud tocelebrate it with as much of an offering as I was able to make. It’s my attempt at trying to collect all theremaining easter eggs surrounding Cerulean, to bring fans in as close as possible.”

Gay Meat, the project of North Carolina’s Karl Kuehn, leads a life of intention. Raised in the small seaside town of Southport, NC, Karl and his beloved mom Karen built a vivid life together. It’s been just the two of them since Kuehn was 11 – their days colored by late-night coffee chit-chats, tv binging, music and more.

In 2018, everything changed. Karen suffered six grand mal seizures that left her brain permanently damaged, and Kuehn’s life shifted toward caring for his mom. Their fiery, free-flowing world quickly narrowed. Though doctors gave Karen anywhere from a week to a year to live, she didn’t pass away until January 2021.

That time became a gift, one that allowed Kuehn to know the person behind the parent. Across three years marked by a hurricane, a pandemic, and a life upended, he found solace the only way he knew how: picking up any instrument within reach and piecing together their story. Blue Water is his debut album under his moniker Gay Meat, a record that gently, lovingly says goodbye to his mom.

Piecing together the sepia patchwork of memories through a child’s eyes, the album’s 13 tracks were written alone, chronicling the anticipatory grief and the immediate aftermath of loss. Friends including Jeff Rosenstock, Chris Farren, Sarah Tudzin (Illuminati Hotties), Lamont Brown (RNIE), and Taylor Haag lent their vocals and instrumentation across the record, with production from Brett Scott and Alex Thompson.