King Pine Releases RUNNING OUT OF FUTURE Experimental EP

What happens when a songwriter stops thinking about how a song will sound onstage and starts asking how far he can push it in the studio?

That question is at the heart of Running Out Of Future, the new EP from Austin singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist James Hearne, performing under the moniker King Pine, out September 23, 2026.

A moody and atmospheric blend of indie-psych-folk, folktronica and experimental pop, the six-song collection represents a distinctly different creative approach for Hearne. After years of 'we jam econo' touring and more than 1,200 live performances over the past five years, he deliberately set aside the practical limitations of the stage and approached Running Out Of Future as a studio-first project.

For the first time, Hearne created a King Pine record almost entirely on his own, writing, arranging and performing virtually every part. His home studio became an instrument in itself, allowing him to experiment with layered vocals, synths, programmed rhythms, guitars and textures that would be difficult, if not impossible, to recreate live.

'I've always, always written with the stage in mind; I wanted to make a record without asking myself, 'How are we going to pull this off live?'' Hearne says. 'That gave me permission to follow the songs wherever they wanted to go and to experiment in ways I normally wouldn't.'

Hearne's songwriting heroes include Paul Simon, Lennon/McCartney, Jason Isbell, Ani DiFranco and Elliott Smith, artists whose influence reflects his longstanding interest in strong songwriting, distinctive voices and emotionally complex storytelling. For Running Out Of Future, however, Hearne drew from a different sonic palette, looking to The Postal Service, David Gray's White Ladder, My Bloody Valentine and late-'80s/early-'90s pop radio as touchstones for the record's production and atmosphere.

The result is Hearne's most personal and adventurous King Pine release to date. Across six songs, Running Out Of Future explores connection, community, resilience, environmental anxiety and the challenge of remaining hopeful in an increasingly complicated world.

Songs including 'Work To Do,' 'Still Be Friends' and 'Tightrope' reflect Hearne's interest in the tension between the personal and the collective, the way people navigate uncertainty while continuing to seek connection and meaning.

Though the EP began as an intentionally solitary studio experiment, Hearne eventually brought longtime friend and collaborator Dave Drago into the process to add live drums, creating another layer of human interplay within the record's electronically textured, studio-built sound.

For an artist whose career has been deeply rooted in live performance, Running Out Of Future is a chance to explore what happens when the stage is no longer the destination. Instead, the studio becomes the place where the songs can stretch, evolve and take unexpected forms.

More information is available at kingpineatx.com.