Angel Olsen Shares Resonant Live Performance of ‘Waving, Smiling’ — ‘Whole New Mess’ Album Out 8/28

Angel Olsen has established herself in the indie/rock realm as a special, can’t-miss talent, and on Aug. 28 she will release Whole New Mess, her fifth full-length album and the follow-up to 2019’s All Mirrors, via Jagjaguwar. The collection reimagines much of All Mirrors in intimate, more stripped-back arrangements.

(Click here to pre-order Whole New Mess from our Rock Cellar Store).

On Tuesday, Angel Olsen shared a live performance video for “Waving, Smiling” as a preview of the new record. Filmed at the Masonic Temple in Ashville, North Carolina, the performance is as haunting as it is captivating, fully putting Olsen’s talents on display:

“‘Waving, Smiling’ in my head is the last scene, a slow motion realization of love not lost but at peace somewhere within myself,” Olsen said in a statement. “It’s the bittersweet end of a chapter of my life — it is the final acceptance that despite coming to an end all of that time was not lost or wasted.”

My new single “Waving, Smiling” is streaming everywhere now. In my head it’s the last scene, a slow motion realization of love not lost but at peace somewhere within myself. pic.twitter.com/roIWGcOlaZ

— Angel Olsen (@AngelOlsen) August 18, 2020

Previously, Olsen shared the new album’s title track:

Whole New Mess was recorded in 2018 and will be Angel Olsen’s first solo album (without her band mates) since 2012. The track listing:

1. Whole New Mess
2. Too Easy (Bigger Than Us)
3. (New Love) Cassette
4. (We Are All Mirrors)
5. (Summer Song)
6. Waiving, Smiling
7. Tonight (Without You)
8. Lark Song
9. Impasse (Workin’ For The Name)
10. Chance (Forever Love)
11. What It Is (What It Is)

Additionally, she will host a live stream concert event on Aug. 28 to mark the album’s release — click here for details and ticket information.