Two years after putting out one of the best indie rock records of 2023, Chicago’s Ratboys are back with a new song, “Anywhere,” from their upcoming album, Singin’ to an Empty Chair.
“Anywhere” taps into the anxious restlessness of yearning with a twangy power-pop energy that comes through in its rumbling drums and off-kilter lightning bolt lead guitar riff. Loading up the track’s big belt-along chorus, singer-guitarist Julia Steiner sings, “I can’t relax now/I can’t, you’re gone/But when you’re back/I’m going anywhere/That you’re going.”
The song also arrives with a music video, directed by Bobby Butterscotch, that offers up a classic portrait: That of a man and his beloved pet — in this case, a goldfish. The inseparable pair enjoy a diner breakfast, read together in the park, and at the end, post up on the shores of Lake Michigan to enjoy the Chicago skyline, and then take a dip together.
The story also nods back to one of the figures that partly inspired “Anywhere”: Ratboys guitarist Dave Sagan’s family dog. “Whenever Dave’s mom leaves the room, oh man, his whole world just falls apart,” Steiner said of the pup in a statement. “You can see it in his face. I think a lot of us can relate to that sort of anxious attachment style.”
Ratboys are set to release Singin’ to an Empty Chair on Feb. 6, 2026. Much of the album — which follows their 2023 effort The Window — was written and recorded at a cabin in Wisconsin’s Driftless Area, while additional sessions took place at Steve Albini’s Electrical Audio in Chicago and Rosebud Studio in Evanston, Illinois. Singin’ to an Empty Chair was co-produced by Chris Walla, who also helmed The Window.
In a statement, Steiner said, “A big, overarching theme of this record is my attempt to document my experience being estranged from a close loved one. The goal is to update this person on what’s been going on in my life and to try to bridge that impasse and reach out a hand into the void.”
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Noting the album isn’t all “doom and gloom,” Steiner added: “The experience of making this record definitely gives me hope for whatever happens next. There are plenty of good days, days filled with friendship and love, and then there are days when I dwell on things and desperately want to bridge the gap. It’s my whole life, you know? So, for me this record is a document of all those days stitched together, like a quilt in a time capsule, just waiting to get dug up when the time is right.”
“Anywhere” is the second song Ratboys have shared from Singin’ to an Empty Chair following “Light Night Mountains All That.” The band has already announced a North American tour in support of the record, which will kick off Feb. 25 in Detroit and wrap April 18 with a hometown show in Chicago.