Tokyo Police Club's Dave Monks Releases New Track 'The Rules'; ALL SIGNS POINT TO YES Out Next Week

Tokyo Police Club's frontman, Dave Monks has shared a second track "The Rules" off his upcoming debut EP, titled All Signs Point To Yes. The EP is out next week, June 16.

The latest single premiered through Consequence of Sound, which you can read about HERE. Dave previously shared his first single "Gasoline" via Stereogum.

Scroll down for a first listen to "The Rules"!

All Signs Point To Yes was written and completed ?over the latter half of 2013, while Monks was falling in love with a new person and a new place. Inspired by that romantic relationship and a move from Toronto to Brooklyn, Monks sought to hone in on the honesty in his songwriting, stripping away other sounds in order to focus the spotlight on his voice and acoustic guitar. The result is an EP of fully formed, earnest, and insightful songs that serve as both a natural evolution and familiar embrace of Monks' music.

Removing the other instruments also revealed a creative freedom for Monks, inspiring a simplicity and directness to which all songwriters aspire. "As I was writing these songs I just thought, 'What if this i?s? the song, what if it just starts with me and I don't have to add anything else and I can embrace all the things that come most naturally to me?' There's definitely less stuff to hide behind."

Settled in his new place in Bushwick, Monks embraced the collaborative spirit and structure of New York City, adding a new bass player and drummer to the project while sharing songs constantly with his girlfriend and other musician friends. "It's definitely honest," he says of his voice on the EP, which he recorded himself in his apartment before handing over to be mixed by Rob Schnapf. "It could be too honest for some people but I'm in a really good spot and wrote a bunch of sweet songs. I appreciate the connection that comes from sharing something that somebody might not have seen, that's not visible to the naked eye. People do relate to it, and I find that super rewarding; that drives me in a lot of ways. I'm trying to understand what people really want to get out of music."

Despite all its sincerity and intimacy, A?ll Signs Points To Yes s?till manages to avoid being too wistful or overly serious while still giving us a very real look into the life of its singer. It i?s a small record with a big heart, a snapshot of a man in a new time and new place who is learning to expand his reach, all while stripping away the superfluous and concentrating on connecting through trust, humor, and sincerity.

All Signs Point To Yes Tracklisting:

Vegas

Gasoline

The Rules

Miss You

Heartbeat Blues

Summer Dream

Be sure to check out Dave Monks live:

06/15 Washington, DC @ Black Cat Backstage
06/16 New York, NY @ Mercury Lounge
06/25 Toronto, ON @ The Garrison
06/26 Hamilton, ON @ Casbah Lounge
06/27 Ottwawa, ON @ House of TARG
07/08 Cambridge, MA @ TT The Bear's Place
07/09 Philadelphia, PA @ Milkboy

Listen to "The Rules"!

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