Pinkshift release new album ‘Earthkeeper’ today, August 29, via Hopeless

Pinkshift release new album

‘Earthkeeper’ today, August 29, via Hopeless

Announced as support to Grandson in the UK & Europe in 2026

“a significant level-up that’s a complex cocktail of rage, vulnerability, and determination”

– Kerrang! ★★★★

“it’s a collective interrogation of grief, identity, and what it means to belong in a world that feels like it’s falling apart.” – Rock Sound

“defiant and self-assured…  it’s the sound of a band coming into its own.”

– DORK ★★★★

“a furious glow-up… Earthkeeper is a call to action for both resisting fascist creep and being kinder to our world”

– Metal Hammer

PHOTO CREDIT: KT Kanazawich

Today, Maryland trio Pinkshift — vocalist Ashrita Kumar (they/them), guitarist Paul Vallejo (he/him), and drummer Myron Houngbedji (he/him) — have released their head-turning new album ‘Earthkeeper’ via Hopeless Records. Get it here.

Pinkshift will continue to make a splash through the end of the year and into 2026. They’ve just been announced as support to Grandson on his UK & European tour Jan-March next year. The band will soon embark on a headline tour of the East Coast and in their native Baltimore. All upcoming appearances and dates are below.

PINKSHIFT ON TOUR:

04/10— Baltimore, MD — The Amphitheatre at the Inner Harbor

10/10 — Asbury Park, NJ — Asbury Lanes

11/10 — Richmond, VA — Richmond Music Hall

12/10 — Carrboro, NC — Cat’s Cradle Backroom

14/10 — Atlanta, GA — The Masquerade

15/10 — Orlando, FL — Conduit

17/10 — Houston, TX — White Oak Music Hall

18/10 — Austin, TX — The Ballroom

19/10 — Dallas, TX — Club Dada

21/10 — Phoenix, AZ — Rebel Lounge

22/10 — San Diego, CA — The Voodoo Room

23/10 — Santa Ana, CA — Constellation Room

24/10 — Los Angeles, CA — The Echo

25/10 — San Francisco, CA — Bottom of the Hill

27/10 — Portland, OR — Polaris Hall

28/10 — Seattle, WA — Neumos

30/10 — Salt Lake City, UT — Kilby Court

01/11 — Denver, CO — Marquis Theater

02/11 — Lawrence, KS — Bottleneck

04/11 — Minneapolis, MN — 7th Street Entry

05/11 — Chicago, IL — Bottom Lounge

07/11 — Detroit, MI — The Sanctuary

08/11 — Cleveland, OH — Mahall’s

09/11 — Pittsburgh, PA — Thunderbird Music Hall & Café

11/11 — Toronto, ON — Hard Luck Bar

13/11 — Boston, MA — Brighton Music Hall

14/11 — Hamden, CT — Space Ballroom

15/11 — Philadelphia, PA — First Unitarian Church

16/11 — Washington, DC — Atlantis

WITH GRANDSON:

29/01 — Munich, DE — Tonhalle

30/01 — Berlin, DE — Huxleys Neue Welt

01/02 — Utrecht, NL — TivoliVredenburg (Ronda)

03/02 — Brussels, BE — Ancienne Belgique

06/02 — Münster, DE — Skaters Palace

07/02 — Copenhagen, DK — Amager Bio

08/02 — Hamburg, DE — Docks

18/02 — Milan, IT — Magazzini Generali

19/02 — Lausanne, CH — Les Docks

20/02 — Zurich, CH — X-TRA

21/02 — Wiesbaden, DE — Schlachthof

23/02 — Paris, FR — La Cigale

24/02 — Cologne, DE — E-Werk

26/02 — Manchester, UK — Academy

28/02 — Birmingham, UK — O2 Institute

01/03 — Bristol, UK — Electric Bristol

02/03 — London, UK — O2 Forum Kentish Town

03/03 — Glasgow, UK — SWG3 – Galvanizers

PINKSHIFT ONLINE:

Instagram  |  Website  |  Spotify

ABOUT PINKSHIFT + ‘EARTHKEEPER’:

During a pit stop while travelling between shows in 2023, Pinkshift found a huge fallen redwood tree. Vocalist Ashrita Kumar (they/them), guitarist Paul Vallejo (he/him), and drummer Myron Houngbedji (he/him) lay down on the trunk, staring up at the canopy of leaves from the trees around them. What followed is an experience Kumar describes as almost psychedelic. They felt as if the trees were inviting them to stay there forever. “I heard these voices telling me that I’m welcome here,” they recall. “And everything I could ever want is in this space.”

‘Earthkeeper’ is a record that bursts at the seams with big riffs, big feelings, and big ideas. At its core is a spiritual being whose name gives the record its title — “a reflection of universal consciousness and a protector of existence.” It’s a patchwork of anxiety, angst, grief, and hope, juggling experiences both personal and existential across themes such as loss, one’s individual purpose, and what it means to watch the notion of a stable life collapse before your eyes.

Crucially, Ashrita, Paul, and Myron are not the same people that they were when they made their 2022 debut ‘Love Me Forever’. They’ve grown, matured, and been altered by experience. They crafted their debut at a time where they didn’t have as much experience playing live as they do now. “The first album was influenced a lot by stuff we grew up listening to because we’d never really toured,” offers Myron. “It’d really cool that now, after all this touring, there’s bits and pieces of all these bands we wouldn’t otherwise have listened to that have weaved their way into our songwriting.”

Lumped in with an emerging pop-punk resurgence at the turn of the decade that they never quite identified with, they’ve broken out of those confines by writing a significantly heavier record that could not fall under that umbrella in almost any possible way. In some ways, this was a product of their evolving tastes, and a more accurate reflection of who they are musically.

All three of them brought new influences into the studio. “Myron and I got really into Loathe and Knocked Loose,” adds Paul. “It inspired me to pick up the baritone guitar that I had, playing in lower tunings. I love the direction that the metal scene is going in and if I could reflect that in any way with respect to the guitar playing that was going on, I’d jump at every opportunity.”

If there was a mission statement to ‘Earthkeeper’, this would be it. They stand for unity, collectivity, community, and action, but above all, the Maryland trio are hoping their new songs can have a more personal, emotional resonance too. “I think with this record, I’m trying to inspire you to, give a fuck,” Ashrita concludes. “You’re worth giving a fuck about. I feel like people don’t give a fuck about themselves but in the same way those redwood trees told me I’m welcome here, you matter and you belong here.”