Dispatch Celebrates Release of America, Location 12 at Newbury Comics

It’s hard to pin down another act from New England that has had more success than the indie-roots band Dispatch over the past 20 years. Their initial final concert in 2004 at the Hatch Shell in Boston was attended by over 160,000 people, the biggest crowd an independent act had played for at the time. They have had a few subsequent reunions and since 2011 the trio of Chadwick Stokes Urmston, Pete Heimbold and Brad Corrigan have been back at it while still venturing through their various side projects. The band’s sixth studio album America, Location 12 is being put out to the masses on June 2 and they celebrated its release with a mini-tour of three Newbury Comics stores on June 3. The stops on the tour included the shop in the Providence Place mall, Norwood, MA and Manchester, NH.

“We’re wicked psyched to have America, Location 12 finally out and to be playing some of the tunes at Newbury Comics,” Urmston says about the album’s release and the unique expedition. “Providence has always been good to us. We recorded our album Bang Bang just a few miles south at Lakewest Recordings, and some of our favorite shows took place in the old Lupo’s Heartbreak Hotel.”

The new album is Dispatch’s first release in five years, following 2012’s Circles around the Sun. It’s a return to form for the band with their trademark mix of acoustic and electric tunes that are adorned with harmonies and political undertones. Tracks like “Be Gone” are rhythmic anthems that encompass a triumphant vibe. “Skin The Rabbit” is a rough and rugged song that examines how people of authority prey on others for their own gain. An acoustic gem that’s an excellent example of Urmston’s poignant lyrics is “Ghost Town;” it’s stripped down and genuinely honest.

Stream of America, Location 12 via Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/2GkDG2SbBX4lewmepYLAYV

Dispatch’s Website: https://dispatchmusic.com/