Oakland musician Maria BC is preparing to release a new album titled Marathon on February 27 via Sacred Bones Records. The project follows their previous work Spike Field and features a title track inspired by nostalgic memories of a childhood gas station. A video for the single, directed by F. Saber Sutphin, accompanies the announcement.
Maria BC, an Oakland-based artist, has revealed details of their upcoming album, Marathon, set for release on February 27 through Sacred Bones. This follows their earlier album Spike Field and emphasizes a shift in creative focus.
The title track, also called "Marathon," evokes a sense of conflicted nostalgia tied to Marathon gas stations from the artist's childhood. Maria BC shared in a press release: "There was a Marathon gas station at the end of the street I lived on as a kid. Its big, glowing sign was a landmark for me—when I could see it from the window of my mom’s car, I knew we were about to be home. Its iconic ‘M’—on the rare occasion I encounter one these days—still brings up that old feeling, the familiarity of homecoming, and a twinge of nostalgia."
The artist reflects on the branding's patriotic elements, including red, white, and blue colors and imagery of dusty roads, cowboys, and wild horses, aligned with the slogan 'Fueling the American Spirit.' They describe advertising as 'satanic poetry' and find it sinister that such a logo can evoke positive nostalgia despite its associations.
Regarding the album's development, Maria BC explained: "I decided to spend less time on production and recording and more time on songwriting. The result, I think, is more thematically consistent, lyrically speaking, and more concise… I set out to make something more dynamic and varied."
The tracklist for Marathon includes:
- 01 Marathon
- 02 As the Earth Turns
- 03 Peacemaking
- 04 Safety
- 05 Rare
- 06 Port Authority
- 07 The Sound
- 08 Sabotage
- 09 June
- 10 Night & Day
- 11 May This Rain
- 12 Channels
- 13 Miami
A video for the title track, directed by F. Saber Sutphin, is available to watch.
